


Regrets

by queenmagnus



Category: Avatar: Legend of Korra
Genre: established kyalin, kyalin - Freeform, lin being lin and risking her life, past linzin, starts a little rough
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2021-02-03
Updated: 2021-03-10
Packaged: 2021-03-15 01:13:42
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 18
Words: 23,135
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/29180823
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/queenmagnus/pseuds/queenmagnus
Summary: Lin and Tenzin thought they had lost their child and their relationship broke up because of it. Years later their world is forever changed by a surprising reveal.
Relationships: Lin Beifong/Kya II
Comments: 37
Kudos: 142





	1. Prologue

**Author's Note:**

> This is a work in progress fic so updates will definitely be slower than usual. Generally follows along with established canon. In my world Kya and Lin got together in the 3 years between season 3 and 4.

“Master Tenzin? Did you hear me?”

The world was moving in slow motion as a sharp ringing filled Tenzin’s head. He stared at the healer, the words not quite sinking in. He blinked rapidly, trying to focus on what he was saying.

“What?”

“I’m so sorry. The baby didn’t make it.”

_“No.”_

“Master Tenzin, you really shouldn’t go-“

The words were cut off as Tenzin pushed past him and into the room they had brought Lin. He immediately froze in place, his face paling at the sight that greeted him. There were four different healers surrounding Lin as she lay unconsciousness in a pool of blood. He didn’t fight back as he was ushered back out the door.

“We’re doing everything we can to save her, but… but there’s a lot of damage.”

Tenzin felt the strength in his legs falter as he collapsed into a nearby chair. This wasn’t right. How could everything have gone so horribly wrong? Resting his elbows on his knees he buried is face in his hands as his entire world threatened to break apart.

* * *

“Lin, please let me in.”

She didn’t move from her spot on the floor, her back resting against the slab of earth she had used to barricade the bedroom door. She hugged her knees to her chest as she stared at nothing, lost in the void of her own thoughts. She had never felt such grief but it was the irrational feelings of guilt that felt like they might destroy her very soul.

_She didn’t even want kids._

It’s what she had told herself for as long as she could remember. She didn’t want to be a bad parent, didn’t want to make the same mistakes her own mother had made.

And yet.

The first time she had felt the unique flutter of a new heartbeat growing within her she had never wanted something more. Or so she thought….

Maybe if she had just wanted her _more…_ she’d be alive.

* * *

The first time Lin emerged from the bedroom Tenzin nearly let out a breath of relief. He didn’t say a word as he stood before her, giving her the space to make the first move. She silently walked to him and wrapped her arms around his middle. He felt a lump growing in his throat at her warmth, carefully putting his arms around her.

“Lin…”

“Just hold me.”

He pulled her closer to him, burying his face in her hair as he felt her silent tears sink into the front of his robe. They just stayed there, grieving for their lost child.

* * *

They tried. They really did. They tried to go back to normal. Tried to fall back into their easy banter, to their soft touches, to their love. But days turned to weeks, weeks turned to months and it was obvious that things could never be the same again.

“I’m not having this argument with you again, Tenzin.”

“It doesn’t have to be an argument! Not if you’d just talk to me, Lin!”

She huffed at him as she made herself a cup of tea. He carefully walked up behind her, wrapping his arms around her middle and resting his hands on her stomach. She stiffened but didn’t say anything.

“I know we’ll never be able to replace the one we lost but could try ag-“

Lin violently pushed him away as if he had burned her. She whipped around to face him, angrily smashing her teacup onto the ground as her face reddened.

“I DON’T WANT TO TRY AGAIN! I NEVER WANT TO HAVE CHILDREN, LEAST OF ALL WITH _YOU!”_

The words cut through Tenzin like a blade. He took a step back, closing his eyes and taking a steadying breath. It seemed like a lifetime before he opened his eyes and looked to her again.

“This isn’t working, Lin.”

His words were like a slap to the face.

“Tenzin, please…”

Her voice trailed off as she waited for the blow to come. She knew it was coming. It had been coming for months, she just didn’t want to face the reality of it.

“I think… I think it’s time for us to….”

He stammered over the words and Lin rolled her eyes in annoyance.

“Grow a spine and just say it, Tenzin.”

“I think it’s best that we end this relationship.”

He felt a piece of his already broken heart fracture further at the look on her face. Devastation was the only word for it and is tears welled in her eyes he thought maybe he could take it back. That they could work things out. No words came out, though, as she pushed pass him and ran for the door.

Tenzin froze for just a second before he snapped out of it and started to run after her but found the doorway blocked by a thick slab of earth. The whole island rumbled as he ran to a window, his mouth falling agape at the large pillars of earth that had erupted across the whole island.

* * *

_She held the squirming infant close to her. Warm pink color finally filling her cheeks. The babe still didn’t cry or open her eyes as she quietly left the hospital. Everything had gone so much easier than she had expected. And it would be easier on the parents if they thought the baby was dead. A much better solution than kidnapping._

_She let out a sigh of relief as she walked into the night undetected. She looked down at the baby girl’s sweet face and felt an indescribable feeling._

_She had always wanted a daughter._

_“Do you have the child?”_

_The world thought the baby was dead. Why not them too? They had hired her to kidnap the babe, it had been her own ingenious plan to come up with an alternative solution. Visions of a perfect little nose flashed in her mind and she shook her head in mock disappointment._

_“There was an accident and the baby was stillborn. I’m sorry, sir.”_


	2. Chapter One

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm having a hard time with the POVs on this stupid fic. I had planned to have the first two chapters up yesterday but I had to rework it a bit. There's still a chance I'll update this part as I write more but I wanted to get this bit published for now.

**_20 Years Later_ **

* * *

Lin walked into an already busy and buzzing police headquarters. She hadn’t slept well the night before and work was always a welcome distraction when she didn’t feel well. Some of her officers were taking statements from citizens at their desks and as she walked towards her office she heard a very loud shouting match going on in one of the holding cells. She shook her head with a smile as she opened the office door.

It felt like she had just sat down to do the morning paperwork when there was a sharp knock on her door.

“Come in.”

“Hey Chief, sorry to bother you. I just have a case I wanted to run by you.”

Lin looked up at the young detective before motioning for him to have a seat. He quickly sat, opening the file with his notes messily scribbled all over and started immediately babbling about the details.

“I just interviewed a young woman who claims that she was kidnapped as a baby. Apparently her mother made a deathbed confession and the poor girl was completely blindsided. She wanted to know if we could her find her biological parents. She asked for you personally.”

They both shared a quiet chuckle at the last bit. It was very common for people to request that Lin personally handle their cases. And she did, but only very selectively. She felt for the girl but with the only witness deceased and no other information to go on this was very likely a wild goose chase. She let out a long sigh.

“There’s not much we can really do. But do a little research for her and see if you can find any other information. Just don’t spend too much time on it and don’t get her hopes up that we’ll find anything.”

He furiously wrote down her every word before clumsily getting up.

“Will, do. Thank you, Chief!”

He didn’t leave, looking at her expectantly. It took her a second to figure out what he was waiting for, quickly shaking her head and waving a hand to him.

“Dismissed, detective...?”

“Chen, Chief.”

“Right, of course. You’re dismissed Detective Chen.”

She watched him nearly run into another officer as he bolted from her office, smirking to herself before returning to the never-ending pile of paperwork in front of her.

* * *

“Sir, I’ve got an _interesting_ report.”

“I could use some good news, Lao. What is it?”

The firebender smiled, sitting down in a chair opposite his boss. He handed over what looked like a Republic City police file. Kurai flipped through it, not sure what he was supposed to be looking at. A young woman suspected she was taken from her birth parents and wanted help finding them.

“What am I looking at?”

“Notice the date.”

He flipped back to the front page, the girl’s birth date sparking the depths of his memory. He frowned as the pieces began to click. She had told him the baby had died. _She had lied to him._ He crinkled the page in his hand, he should have questioned her more thoroughly. But it had become this big _thing._ The whole city seemed to mourn with the police chief and the son of the _Avatar…_

“Sir?”

Kurai stood, struggling to keep his own temper in check. All these years lost. They had suffered such a set back after failing to kidnap the first grandchild of Avatar Aang. Around the same time, the new Avatar was discovered and they had made a hasty and sloppy next move not long after. Their leadership had been decimated, imprisoned on opposite ends of the world.

When Zaheer and the others resurfaced six years ago Kurai and the other loyalists had thought their time had finally come but they had been thwarted by the Avatar and her supporters yet again. The _Avatar…_

His mind raced as the beginning foundations of an idea started to form. It wasn’t the best plan but perhaps they could still use this girl to destroy the Avatar or, at the very least, do some serious damage to those who protected her. Much like they had originally planned to weaponized the Avatar for their own purposes. Except this girl had no idea who she actually was. And neither did the rest of the world. They could tell her whatever they wanted and no one would be around to influence her otherwise.

Kurai smiled as his breathing evened out.

“Bring her to me.”

* * *

The day had gone by in such a chaotic daze that Lin didn’t even realize what time it was when her personal phone rang on her desk, making her nearly jump out of her skin. Only a handful of people called her on this line and she was fairly sure she already knew who was on the other line.

“Please tell me you’re coming home soon.”

Smiling, she sank back into her chair.

“Soon. I promise.”

“Don’t make promises you can’t keep, Lin.”

She rolled her eyes. There was truth to the statement. Lin could always be counted on to keep her promises… unless they involved getting home at a reasonable hour. It wasn’t entirely her fault, as the Chief of the entirety of Republic City’s police force unexpected delays were just another part of the job. But since she and Kya had finally moved in together she really was trying to get better at it.

“I’m leaving in five minutes.”

“Good because if you’re any later than that your food will be cold. And I actually put some effort into this one.”

Lin felt her stomach growl as she picked up on a familiar sizzling sound.

“Are you making-“

“My world famous Lin Beifong dumplings? Yes.”

“And the-“

“Homemade chili oil dipping sauce? Of course.”

Lin groaned as her mouth watered. She had requested Kya make the dumplings so often that the waterbender had finally named them after her.

“And then after dinner maybe you can drizzle some of it on me and lic-“

“Kya!”

Lin snapped out of her thoughts as she sat up straighter, feeling her face warm. 

“Oh, come on Lin. I’ve been home all day today and I’m in need of some _special_ attention.”

“Kya... I’m still at work.”

“That didn’t stop you all those times I’ve come to visit you. Are you at the desk right now? Remember that one night after that fancy dinner you snuck away from early?”

Lin did remember. She relaxed back against her chair again, biting her lip as she flashed back to the sight of Kya laying on her back across her desk, her blue dress laying forgotten on the floor as Lin moved her tongue…

“Chief?”

Lin jumped as she snapped out of the memory. She quickly hung up her phone, scowling as she heard Kya laughing on the other end before the line disconnected. It was Detective Chen again. He thankfully didn’t seem to fully realize what he had walked into, or, at least if he did, he didn’t let on. Something Lin was grateful for. She cleared her throat.

“Yes, detective. What can I do for you?”

“Were you leaving? I can talk to you tomorrow if you want?”

The words weren’t quite genuine. There was something on the young officer’s mind and Lin’s own curiosity was piqued.

“What do you have?”

He smiled at her, holding up his yellow case file.

“We were called in for a home invasion turned kidnapping this afternoon. There were signs of a struggle but they didn’t take anything except the girl. This is where it gets interesting. The victim is actually that woman from earlier that I told you about.”

Lin’s brow furrowed. It seemed an odd coincidence but she wasn’t quite sure how the two events were connected yet. She was definitely interested and wanted to take a closer look for herself. She eyed the clock and thought of Kya. Compromises.

“Let me take the file home tonight and I’ll take a look.”

Chen excitedly handed her the file. She knew her officers had a long running challenge of trying to get Lin interested enough to personally handle one of their cases. She just smirked at him before grabbing her coat and heading out the door.


	3. Chapter Two

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> I guess it's time we meet the daughter?

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I am still having a hard time with this fic. I'm just gonna keep rolling with it for now but there is a chance I'll be coming back and re-working the timeline/layout down the road. Or maybe it'll all work out. We'll see!

_“Rei?”_

_She quickly rushed to her mother’s side, kneeling on the floor by her bed._

_“I’m here, mom. Shhh, it’s okay.”_

_She carefully brushed back her damp hair, bringing a small cup of water to her lips. She had to help lift her head as she drank, noticing that she had appeared to be getting weaker. She had gotten so much worse in the last week and the healers had quietly told her that there wasn’t anything else they do to help her. Rei had known for a while that this sickness was going to take her mother from her but she still hadn’t been able to face the reality of it just yet._

_“Rei. I need to tell you something.”_

_She tried to sit up and Rei gently helped prop her up the best she could. Her eyes weren’t completely focused and whatever it was she wanted to tell her seemed to be stressing her out._

_“I didn’t know, I swear I didn’t know. You have to believe me. It was just so much money. But then I saw you and….”_

_Rei’s brow furrowed as she dabbed at her mother’s forehead with a cool cloth._

_“So many times… I was going to tell her… but the chief of police is…. You were so beautiful. My beautiful ray of sunshine…”_

_“Mom, what are you talking about?”_

_Her mother’s eyes seemed to clear for just a moment as she stared into Rei’s. She reached for her, cupping her face in her hands, tears welling in her deep brown eyes._

_“I-i… I took you. Stole you. From the hospital. I’m so sorry… I just wanted to be a mother. I hope I was a good mother.”_

_“The best.”_

_Rei blinked rapidly as her eyes welled with tears. She brought her hands up to her mother’s gripping them tightly as she gently ran her thumb over her bony knuckles._

_“I love you..”_

_Her mother smiled, a look of peace crossing her face before her hands fell away and her eyes closed._

_“Mom?”_

_Tears fell freely as Rei carefully folded her mother’s hands across her chest and kissed her on the forehead. She wiped her eyes as she stood, backing away from the bed slowly as the words started to sink in._

**_She had been kidnapped._ **

Rei jerked awake as the memory faded away and she slowly opened her eyes. Her head was pounding and it took her a minute to remember what had happened. She had gone to the police station. A very nice detective had spoken with her but she had gotten the feeling they weren’t going to be much help. She had been a little frustrated and grabbed some food before heading home.

She bolted upright as the memories came back. She had just entered her apartment when someone had grabbed her. She had tried to fight back but they had injected with something that had made her world go dark.

Now she appeared to be in some sort of dark cell. A _wooden_ cell. Which meant they knew she was an earthbender. But why had they taken her? She had no money, no family to be ransomed for.

And this wasn’t her first time being kidnapped.

The woman she had always thought was her mother had actually stolen her from her real parents. And she had no clue who those parents might be. She was still struggling with the whole situation. Her mother wasn’t a bad person. Her guilt had apparently never gone away and she had even thought about turning herself in to the police more than once. Rei only wished she had had more time with her to better understand what had happened.

The door to her cell clicked and she was immediately on alert, frantically looking around for something she could use as a weapon. There was nothing and she backed away as a man entered.

“What do you want with me? Why am I here?”

The man motioned to someone behind him and two chair were brought in. He sat in one and motioned for Rei to sit in the other. Unable to think of an alternative move at the moment she decided to play along and sat down.

“We’re friends of your mother’s, Rei.”

“I’ve never seen you before.”

“No, not your adopted mother. Your _real_ mother.”

Rei shifted uncertainly in the chair, cursing herself for how desperate she was for more information.

“You know who she is?”

“I do. Or rather I did.”

Her heart sank. Past tense. That meant she was…

“Rei, both your parents are dead.”

She closed her eyes, sinking back into the chair. She should have known she wasn’t destined for a happy ending. No tear filled reunions or grand revelations.

“They were murdered.”

Her eyes snapped to his in surprise.

“What?”

“Your parents were murdered. By Avatar Aang and it was covered up by his friends and family.”


	4. Chapter Three

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> My notes for this chapter literally just said "Lin and Kya being domestic but nothing explicit to keep the rating down"

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Double chapter update!

As soon as Lin pushed the apartment door open she let out a longing groan as the most delicious smell hit her. She took off her coat and set it down on the couch along with the file she had promised to look over. She walked to the kitchen and watched as Kya hummed, dancing around the kitchen as she was putting the finishing touches on Lin’s favorite dinner. She did a dramatic turn, stopping when she caught sight of Lin and beaming brightly.

“Lin! You’re home! And on time for once!”

Lin shook her head as Kya leaned toward her, exposing her right cheek expectantly. She rolled her eyes before carefully moving to kiss the waterbender on the cheek. At the last second Kya shifted her position to kiss Lin fully on the lips.

They pulled a part and Lin couldn’t help a lazy smirk. Kya’s face mirrored her own and on another occasion she may have jumped her girlfriend right then and there but Lin’s stomach rumbled again and she had to take another step back from Kya.

“Later. For now, I’m going to get changed and then I want 4, no 5 of those dumplings because I am _starving_.”

“Yes, Chief!”

Kya gave a lazy salute watching Lin walk away for just a second before turning back to their dinner.

* * *

“Kya, you’ve really outdone yourself this time. What is it that you add to this filling that makes it so delicious?”

“A good chef never reveals her secrets.”

Lin flicked an errant piece of onion at Kya as she wiped the countertops clean. She should have thought more about her move because Kya was currently washing the dishes. She squawked as the slimy onion stuck to her cheek and, before Lin had time to duck, shot a jet of soapy water right into the earthbender’s face.

Lin let out a low growl as she wiped the suds from her face, narrowing her eyes at the waterbender. Kya smiled mischievously, throwing her hands in the air innocently.

“Hey, you started it!”

Lin lunged for her and Kya danced out of her reach, flicking her wet fingers in her face for added effect. She ran down the hallway, making to push open the door to their bedroom when she tripped and fell, one of her feet completely encased in earth as Lin stalked toward her.

“Alright, you caught me. Now can we please stop with all the foreplay and just cut to the chase. Preferably in the shower because I smell disgusting.” 

* * *

Lin stared at the ceiling of the bedroom, completely awake. Kya was snoring loudly, an arm draped over Lin’s middle as a puddle of drool pooled in the space between their pillows. Lin was envious of her ability to sleep so soundly most nights. There was the occasional night when Lin was yanked out of unconsciousness by a thrashing Kya, her nightmares violent and cruel as she cried out in fear. Those nights were the longest and Lin wished she could do something to prevent them.

But preventing Kya’s nightmares was about as easy as stopping her own. She always tried her best not to disturb Kya when she was jolted awake by the images that haunted her dreams. Kya always told her not to worry about, to wake her up when it happened but if Lin did that neither of them would ever get any sleep. It was only on the nights that the plague of terrors caused Lin to unknowingly shake the whole earth that she let Kya care for her. Not fighting back as she held her close, whispering words of comfort to her as she softly caressed the hand that held onto her as if her life depended on it.

They had definitely gotten better over time but Lin was still apparently destined to always be sleep deprived because her racing thoughts often kept her awake long into the night. Tonight she couldn’t shake some unknown feeling. She couldn’t place it but there was something in her gut that was telling her that she was missing something or that something was coming.

Finally having enough, she carefully slipped out bed tucking Kya’s arm in and pulling the blankets up over her shoulders. She walked to the kitchen and filled a glass with water, turning to look at the dark and still apartment. A yellow police file caught her eye and she grabbed it before plopping down onto the couch, flicking a light on as she opened to the first page.

She scanned over the basic details. It was a pretty standard case of breaking and entering turned kidnapping. The description of the scene was indicative of a struggle. _Good for her,_ Lin thought. There had been a small beam of earth sticking up from the ground with blood on it. The detectives weren’t sure if the blood had come from the victim or the perpetrators but looking over the crime scene sketch Lin was almost certain it hadn’t come from the victim.

Which meant she was an earthbender. Of course, that wasn’t unusual in of itself but Lin wondered if could be a clue as to why they had grabbed the girl in the first place. It could be the remnants of one of the triads looking for new members. Or maybe something different altogether…

She was young. Barely twenty years old... Date of birth.

The hairs on the back of Lin’s neck prickled as she ran a thumb over the girl’s date of birth. She sometimes forgot that other babies had been born that day, perfectly healthy. The grief of that day never went away completely, she just got better at managing it.

She snapped the file closed. This case was supposed to be a distraction but instead a fresh barrage of unwanted memories were now racing in her thoughts. The feeling in her gut fluttered as she made her back to the bedroom, a still sleeping Kya now laying on her side and no longer snoring. She’d take a closer look at the case tomorrow with Chen. Sliding back into bed she snaked her arm around Kya and melted against her, finally falling asleep to the steady rhythm of the waterbender’s heartbeat

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Unfortunately you're going to have to wait until I figure out what part I want to post next before the next update. Hopefully shouldn't be too long!


	5. Chapter Four

_One moment Lin was rolling her eyes as she walked down the stairs, the next she was falling. She was off balance and her reflexes were slower than usual as she hit her head against the wall. The force of the hit dazed her enough that she couldn’t react quickly enough to prevent herself from tumbling down the stairs._

_“Lin!”_

_Tenzin appeared at the top of the stairs, a large box falling from his arms as he raced down the stairs. A few of her officers were already helping her back to her feet as her head seemed to be pounding against her skull. It was her last day on duty before her maternity leave and she and Tenzin had spent afternoon packing some things from her office. He had refused to let her carry anything and she had been getting annoyed with his constant coddling when she decided to get some air._

_She thanked her officers as she tried to brush them off, assuring them all that she was fine. She felt Tenzin’s hand brush against the small of her back as he came up behind her. She made to turn to him, a smart remark on her face before she felt a sharp lance of pain across her abdomen. She cried out and doubled over, her legs giving out beneath her._

_Tenzin caught her easily, lifting her carefully into her arms. Lin could feel something warm running down her leg and she started to panic._

_“Hurry, Tenzin. Something’s wrong.”_

_They made their way to the hospital, Lin concentrating on nothing but the beating of her daughter’s heart. She clung to it desperately. A blurry haze had started clouding her vision as Tenzin carried her inside. They were swarmed by a dozen healers, or maybe there were less and she was just seeing double. She didn’t really care as long as that little heartbeat didn’t stop._

_“Lin, can you push for us?”_

_“Chief Beifong, can you hear me?”_

_She tried to keep her eyes open but they were so heavy…_

_“She’s bleeding too much, we need to get the baby out. Do we know if she hit her head on something?”_

_She should tell them what happened. But she was so tired. That unique rhythm from within her stopped and she succumbed to the abyss._

Lin bolted upright, panting slightly as she jolted awake. Kya stirred, opening a bleary eye as she started to regain consciousness. She caught sight of Lin and was immediately alert, sitting up and rubbing comforting circles on Lin’s back.

“I’m up. What happened? Was it the nightmares again?”

Lin took in a steadying breathe. It had been so long since she had dreamt of that day.

“Lin?”

“I’m okay. It was just a memory.”

“Do you want to talk about it?”

“It was the day Tenzin and I lost the baby.”

“Oh…”

Kya looked down as she rested her head against Lin’s shoulder. She hadn’t been around much for that part of Lin’s life but their whole family had suffered an unmeasurable loss that day. This new case was dredging up memories that Lin had thought she had gotten over. This girl was just a sharp reminder of what she had lost. Her birthday, the fact that she was an earthbender. And her mother had apparently kidnapped her the day she was born.

Butterflies fluttered in Lin’s stomach as a new possibility presented itself to her.

But it wasn’t possible. It was just her own mind playing a cruel trick on her. Her daughter had died that day. She would never forget the moment they had told her.

 ** _Told_** her.

They had to tell her after the fact because Lin had lost consciousness before she couldn’t even lay eyes on her daughter.

“Go back to bed, Kya. I’ll be right back, I promise.”

Lin kissed the waterbender on the forehead before throwing off the covers and climbing out bed. She heard Kya flop back onto the bed as she quietly closed the door behind her.

There was a nagging in her head that she couldn’t shake off. She hadn’t seen what had happened but there was someone else who had been there. She just need to know. It was just after 3am but she didn’t care at this point. The line rang 7 times before the voice she was looking for picked up.

“Hello?”

“Tenzin.”

“Lin? Do you have any idea what time it is? Is something wrong?”

She bit her lip for a moment as she paused. They never talked about that day, never. Lin had always liked it that way. But now she just needed to be direct.

“Tenzin, did you see our daughter before they took her away from me?”

“What? Lin, what’s going on?”

“Just answer me. Did you see her?”

There was an awkwardly long pause of silence.

“I’m coming over.”


	6. Chapter Five

Rei kicked the chair, satisfied as she watched it smash a part against the wall of the cell. They had dropped the bombshell of a revelation on her and then just left, refusing to answer any of her questions.

She dropped to her knees and hugged her arms against herself. Her parents were dead. Murdered. By the Avatar… It didn’t seem possible. The Avatar didn’t kill people. Or maybe it was just covered up so well that the world was completely oblivious to anything other than the image of peace the Avatar represented.

She was so confused. And angry. She had never felt so angry in her life. It just didn’t make sense.

No, it literally didn’t make sense.

As she got her emotions under control she started to actually _think_ about everything. This man. This man that had _kidnapped_ her said Avatar Aang had killed her parents. But she was a teacher and taught her students about the history of the Avatars every year. Avatar Aang had already died before she was even born.

And if Avatar Korra had been responsible she would have only been a child. And why wouldn’t he have said Korra instead of Aang. Her head started to pound again as her confusion increased. She let out another yell of frustration, throwing one of the legs to her chair across the room. She rested her head on her knees, trying to keep up with her racing thoughts.

“Perhaps I can be of assistance?”

Rei jumped as she looked around the still empty cell. The voice was sing songy and light but there was something unsettling about it.

“Who’s there?”

There was silence for a moment and Rei thought maybe she was actually losing her mind but then there was a small pop and a glowing green head popped through the wall. Rei jumped up, backing away with a yelp. The next second the rest of the spirit appeared, looking almost like an elephant rat crossed with lemur. It was actually kind of cute and Rei tried to calm herself down. She knew that offending the wrong spirit could have dire consequences.

“S-sorry. You startled me.”

“That’s quite fine. I should have knocked first, I suppose.”

The spirit jumped into the air, their steps unimpeded by the lack of ground to walk on. They walked over to Rei and floated in front of her face keeping unnerving eye contact.

“So? May I help?”

“I’m not sure how you can-“

“The past is my specialty. I can give you the answers to all the questions I know are bouncing around in here.”

They brushed a paw against her forehead and she felt a strange tingly feeling where it made contact. She knew she should probably be more cautious but this spirit didn’t seem to be malicious. In fact, it seemed like they were just bored and Rei’s inner turmoil was just a way to pass their time.

She looked to them and subtly nodded her head. The spirit gave a whoop of joy as they did a loop in the air. Before she knew what was happening the whole room seemed to glow before disappearing entirely.

* * *

_Rei opened her eyes._

_She was no longer in a rickety wooden cell. She now appeared to be standing in the middle of a busy hospital reception area. She watched as several healers seemed to be going in and out of the same room. A tall man in air nomad robes was pacing nearby, looking up every time someone emerged from the room._

_Rei walked to the room and pushed open the door. Everything was in pure chaos, healers nearly yelling at each other in obvious frustration as they worked on their patient. Rei moved near a corner, out of the way as she watched. She couldn’t quite see the woman on the bed but she was unresponsive and there was blood everywhere._

_“She’s out! Jia! Come take her, she’s not breathing.”_

_Rei was moving before her own mind could catch up. It was only when she caught sight of herself in the reflection of a window that she figured out what was going on. She was seeing this particular memory through the eyes of the woman she had always called her mother._

_A wet and slimey baby was thrust into her arms and she turned away from the bloody scene, focusing on the child. Her eyes kept darting over her shoulders as she cleaned off the baby. The others were distracted, trying to save the mother. Her heartbeat was racing as she quickly wrapped up the baby, moving to the door at the back of the room._

_“I need more space, I’ll be back!”_

_No one seemed to pay her any attention as she pushed through the door into the back hallway. She made her way to the first empty room she could find and unwrapped the baby, carefully pushing on her tiny chest and pushing air into her lungs by covering her nose and mouth with her own and blowing out._

_At the same time she summoned a trickle of glowing blue healing water and ran it over the babe, not sure what she could heal but figuring it couldn’t hurt. A couple minutes went by and she nearly cried out when the tiny body jerked a bit, arms and legs slowly flailing as she cried out. Jia wrapped her back up in the blanket, bouncing her up and down and willing her to not cry too loudly._

_The babe quieted as if the spirits had heard her pleas and Jia checked frantically that she was still breathing. She was, a butterfly flutter of a heartbeat going strong. Looking around the room she carefully set the infant in an empty file box, tucking it out of sight under a table._

_She took a moment, rubbing her hands through her hair before taking a deep breath and walking back out into the hallway and through the doors to the room that held the baby’s true mother._

_Things seemed to have taken a turn for the worse when she entered. Her superior caught sight of her, the man’s eyes more weary than she had ever seen._

_“Jia! Is the baby-“_

_“I tried everything I could. She didn’t make it.”_

_He cursed, the first time she had ever heard such profanity from him but didn’t question her further. He yelled at one of the other healers to go update the father before returning his attention the woman on his bed. Jia finally caught a sight of her and Rei took in a sharp breath at the same time her false mother did. Her face was younger and hair darker but the two jagged scars down her cheek were as recognizable as ever._

_Jia immediately backed out of the room again, her breathing becoming erratic as she pushed back into the room she had left the babe in. She quickly grabbed her and walked down the hall in the opposite direction as quickly as she could._

_She could just bring her back, tell them the baby was fine and everything would be okay. But then he would know she had failed. He would punish her. Or worse, kill her. No one paid her any attention as she got to the stairs at the back of the hospital that no one but staff generally used._

_It was only when she had pushed out the door to the back alley that she let out a breath of relief. She carefully pulled back the blanket and looked at the perfect baby girl’s face. She couldn’t risk bringing her back inside but she didn’t know what Kurai had planned for the girl. Now that she knew whose child this was she had a feeling it was nothing good._

_She couldn’t let him have her either._

_And after all, she had always wanted a child of her own._

_“Don’t worry. I’ll protect you. My beautiful Rei.”_


	7. Chapter Six

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry for how short my chapters always are lol. I'm a quick paced and to the point kind of fic writer and I feel like page breaks within the same chapter don't offer enough of a pause to shift between POVs or time jumps.
> 
> And this one is especially short, oops

Lin was quietly finishing the pot of tea she was brewing when there was a soft knock on the door. She immediately went to it to open it and let Tenzin inside. He looked slightly unkempt and the bags under his eyes were darker than usual but his eyes were alert as he stared at her in concern.

“Lin, what’s going on?”

She let out a long sigh, running her fingers through her hair before motioning for Tenzin to sit down at the table with her. She had already set two cups out for them and filled them with the fragrant green tea she had just finished brewing. She watched him for a moment as he sipped from the cup, his eyes catching hers as he raised an eyebrow. She took in a deep breath and decided to just be direct and to the point.

“I had a dream. And I… I just need to know what happened that day. I can only remember bits and pieces of it because I lost consciousness so quickly.”

Tenzin set down the cup and seemed to sag against his chair as he let out a sigh.

“I didn’t see her. They came out and told me the baby was gone. I ran into the room and saw you. Y-you were so pale, Lin. I thought I was going to lose you too.”

 _He hadn’t even seen her._ Lin quickly stood up, the chair scraping noisily against the floor as she began pacing.

“Lin? Are you going to tell me what’s going on?”

“We’ve got this case that’s bringing up some memories I’d rather forget.”

“What’s the case?”

Lin stopped her pacing, walking to the living room with Tenzin following behind her. She handed him the file from the end table, something falling from the back pages as she did so. Lin collapsed onto the couch, resting her face in her hands as she rubbed her eyes in frustration. After a few minutes Tenzin bent down to pick up the fallen paper and Lin felt him sink into the couch next to her.

“It’s definitely a little eerie but it could just a coincidence that hits a little too close to home.”

He passed the file back over to Lin.

“I know. It’s just that so many things don’t make sense and you know how I feel about coincidences.”

She looked to him and furrowed her brow. He was staring at was evidently a photo of the victim and her mother. His mouth was slightly agape and his eyes had widened in apparent surprise.

“Tenzin? What is it?”

“Lin, I… I recognize this woman.”

“Apparently she just got a job as teacher. Barely 20 years old and already-“

“Not the younger woman. This one.”

He pointed to girl’s mother as he shifted his position closer to Lin.

“She was one of the healers that helped us that day. The day we lost… She was there, Lin.”

Lin stared at him for a second before looking down at the photo. She hadn’t seen the picture earlier but now that she couldn’t take her eyes off the dark haired girl standing next to the older woman. It was probably just her own mind playing tricks on her but she thought she could recognize herself in the young woman’s face.

“What’s going on out here?”

Kya yawned, stretching her arms up as she exited the bedroom, her barely there nightgown hanging off her shoulder. They looked up to her, Tenzin’s face growing red as he quickly looked away from his sister. Lin immediately got up, walking to Kya, taking her hands in her own. She struggled to find words as the weight of the emotions barreling towards her threatened to crush her. When she opened her mouth and nothing came out Kya looked over shoulder to Tenzin.

“Tenzin?”

The airbender was also at an apparent loss for words as he stared at nothing. After a moment he seemed to recover a bit, looking to where Lin and Kya stood.

“I think… I think our daughter is still alive.”


	8. Chapter Seven

“Chief! Chief I found something!”

Lin turned from the board of papers and photographs she had set up across one of the walls of her office to see Detective Chen come running into the room, nearly sliding across the floor as he came to a stop. It had been two days and Lin hadn’t slept at all as she flung herself into researching everything she could about the case. Chen held a small black book in his hand.

“What did you find?”

Chen was catching his breath as he handed it over to her.

“It’s a diary. From Jia, the woman who…”

**_Kidnapped my daughter_.**

Lin finished the sentence in her head as she flipped through the pages. It appeared to be a diary of sorts. There was an entry that had evidently been bookmarked, most likely by her detective.

_“I worked at the hospital part time and was approached by a man to kidnap a baby after it was born. At first I said no but he offered me more money than I make at the hospital in five years. I knew how horrible it was but figured I could just treat it like a job and tried not to think about it too much after I said yes._

_The day came and there were complications. I had the opportunity to say the infant didn’t survive. I thought this would make things easier for my boss. But then I couldn’t follow through. I couldn’t hand this perfect little girl over to him. I don’t even know what organization he was from._

_I didn’t know who the baby belonged to before I agreed to the job. And I’m ashamed to admit that even after I found out I couldn’t bring myself to come forward. She was my daughter now._

_The Avatar’s son moved on and had kids of his own and I saw how busy the Police Chief was with her job. She didn’t have time for a child anyway.”_

Lin stopped reading, flinging the book across the room before she damaged the evidence. There was a pressure building inside her and thought her heart was going to beat out of her chest. This was undeniable proof that this missing girl was… that her daughter wasn’t…

She slammed a fist down on her desk, the whole thing buckling in on itself as the metal crunched and twisted. Chen didn’t say anything as he stood quietly, waiting for his Chief to gather herself. It took a couple minutes of slow, steady breathing before Lin found herself able to speak.

“Are there any leads on the girl’s location or who may have taken her?”

“No, Chief. I’m sorry. We haven’t found anything.”

Lin walked around her mangled desk and slumped into her chair.

“Thank you, detective. Let me know if you get any leads.”

“Yes, chief!”

He left and Lin carefully picked up her phone from the ground. It only took two rings for Kya to pick up which meant she must have been waiting near it.

“Lin?”

She felt a lump in throat, trying to steady her voice but it still cracked when she spoke.

“Kya, it’s her. It’s really her.”

Lin let out a gasp, quickly pulling her face from the phone and covering her mouth to stop the sob that threatened to open a dam of emotions she was struggling to contain. Kya didn’t speak for a moment and when she did her voice was soft and kind.

“We’ll find her, Lin. I promise. Will you please come home? Just for tonight?”

 _Never promise the victim’s family that you’ll bring their loved one home safe because that’s not a promise you can always keep._ The bitter thought was automatic. The very basics of dealing with missing persons cases. Lin never imagined she’d be on this side of things and yet here she was.

“I’ll be home in a bit.”

“I love you, Lin.”

“Love you, too.”

They hung up and Lin walked to her case board, carefully unpinning a photo of the dark haired girl and studying every inch of her.

_Rei._

Her daughter.

* * *

The next day Lin was back at the station before the sun had even come up. She had spent the morning in a terrible mood, yelling at anyone that crossed her path and unfairly belittling her own officers for not having more information for her.

She retreated to her office and started reading more passages from the diary they had recovered from the girl’s apartment. There were dozens of passages, mostly the random thoughts of the woman who wrote them. But there were also many excerpts about her daughter.

_“Rei said her first word today. I was hoping it would be mama because she’s been so close but instead she’s been repeating the phrase “uh oh” over and over again. I’m not sure when she picked it up but it melts my heart every time I hear it.”_

_“She’s an earthbender!! I was sweeping the back steps today when I tripped and cursed at the stairs. Rei was sitting nearby and waddled over. She yelled at the stone stairs for hurting her mommy and then proceeded to make a dramatic and sloppy movement with her arms that caused the entire top stair to break away and go flying across the yard. I’m so proud! I’m going to have find someone to teach her pretty soon, though, otherwise she’s going to start doing some real damage.”_

_“We saw Chief Beifong today and I’ve never been so scared in my life. Rei and I were walking down the street when a bunch of police cars came flying up the street. The car they were chasing lost control and I quickly grabbed Rei and braced us for impact as it came right for us. I felt something wrap around us before we were yanked away. The Chief came up and asked if we were okay before running to the car that had nearly killed us, dragging a couple of bank thieves from within. I didn’t stick around. I just picked up Rei and ran home.”_

Lin was frozen as she reread the passage again and again. She remembered that day. She remembered pulling the woman and child out of the path of that car. Once she knew they were safe she hadn’t even paid them another moment’s notice. The date indicated that Rei had been 4 years old at that time. Shouldn’t she have recognized her? _Why didn’t she recognize her?_

There was a soft knock on her door and Tenzin came in, robes billowing behind him.

“I saw her.”

“What?”

He had stopped dead in his tracks, looking to her in confusion. She got up from her desk and handed him the book opened to the passage she had just read. He scanned the page, slowly stepping back and sitting on the couch she kept in her office. Neither of them spoke as Tenzin sat quietly and Lin started pacing, lost again in thought and a renewed sense of guilt.

She could feel Tenzin looking at her, watching cautiously as she continued to pace back and forth. She always paced when she was upset. He used to joke that if she were a firebender there would scorch marks on all their floors from where she paced.

Lin stopped, leaning against the edge of her desk with her back to Tenzin. They were missing so much of the puzzle. Why had they wanted their daughter all those years ago and why did they decide to take her now?

“Lin… you need to read this one.”

She turned to him and saw that his face had paled. He got up and handed the book back to her.

_“I’m so scared right now. It’s been all over that these powerful prisoners have escaped and are trying to hurt Avatar Korra. I didn’t get many details but one of them is called Zaheer. The man who hired me to kidnap Rei once talked about someone named Zaheer. They all still think Rei died the day she was born but I’m still worried. Rei is a teenager and just wants to hang out with friends but I’m so scared something is going to happen.”_

Lin’s eyes snapped to Tenzin’s her mouth slightly open.

_The Red Lotus._

Before either of them could speak there was a sharp knock on the door. Lin turned to see one of her rookie officers standing there, looking completely terrified as she held up a white envelope.

“S-sorry to interrupt, Chief. You just said to let you know if you got any mail.”

Lin beckoned the nervous officer in and took the letter from her. There were no markings on the envelope except for the words “Chief Lin Beifong” written in a swirling script. She didn’t even bother dismissing her officer before ripping it open.

She scanned over the words a few times before crumpling the paper in her hands, letting out a frustrated growl. She thrust the paper at Tenzin before he could open his mouth. He read the note, backing up slowly, rubbing a hand over his head.

_“Bring us the Avatar if you ever want the chance to meet your daughter”_

Lin was angry now as she resumed her pacing. Apparently there were still remnants of the Red Lotus that were still loyal to Zaheer and his ideologies. Somehow they now knew that she knew the truth about who Rei was. And they were going to use her daughter to try and get to Korra.

“Do you know where Korra is right now, Tenzin?”

“She went with Asami on a business trip to the Fire Nation.”

It took a few minutes for Lin and Tenzin to figure out where the couple were staying and Lin immediately picked up her phone as soon she tracked down the correct contact number.

“I’ve got food!”

Kya entered the office holding up a couple bags of food. She had been making it her personal mission to do whatever she could to take care of Lin and not add to the increasing amount of stress weighing down the woman she loved. Tenzin shushed her loudly, gesturing to Lin and the fact that she was using the phone.

Kya set the food down perched herself on the arm of the couch.

“I’m sorry to bother you, Korra, but I need you to come back to Republic City. I know… I know. I’m sorry. Korra just… _please…”_

Kya reached out for her brother’s hand and squeezed it tightly as her heart broke a little at the desperation in Lin’s voice. Korra must have heard it too.

“Thank you, Korra. Please be safe. Come right to the city. I promise I’ll explain everything.”

Lin hung up the phone and collapsed back into her chair again. She didn’t look to them, staring blankly as her thoughts raced.

“Korra and Asami are their way back. They’re going to meet us on Air Temple Island.”


	9. Chapter Eight

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Even the strongest metal eventually bends under pressure

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Another short update lol 
> 
> I was distracting writing a fun little Valentine's Day fic for my favorite idiots (Lin & Kya of course)

“Dad!”

The three of them landed on Air Temple Island, Rohan running out to meet them. He jumped into the air, perching himself on his father’s shoulders and hugging his head. Lin was helping lower her and Kya to the ground when the young airbender caught sight of them.

“Aunt Kya! Aunt Lin!”

He launched himself off his father jumping for Lin but Kya intercepted him, grabbing him around the middle and pulling him close to her in a big hug. Meelo appeared not long after, doing a loop around their heads with his new flight suit and Pema and the girls came outside, taking turns hugging Tenzin. Jinora pulled away, looking from her father and then to Lin and Kya.

“Are you finally going to tell us what’s going on?”

Tenzin held Ikki close to him, absentmindedly stroking her hair as he stared at Jinora. She looked like Rei. And she was only a few years younger than her. Pema watched him sympathetically and Lin wouldn’t look at any of them. Finally it was Kya who broke the silence that was getting more awkward by the second.

“Why don’t we all go inside?”

She shifted Rohan onto her back as they all made their way inside. Tenzin had already told Pema some of what was going on and he decided that they all deserved to know the full truth. He asked his children to sit quietly while he told them what had happened, Lin reluctantly chiming in as needed. There were a few seconds of silence when they finished before they all broke into a stream of questions.

“So we have another sister?”

“Does that mean Aunt Lin is our mom now too?”

“Are you going to live with Aunt Kya and Aunt Lin now and leave us alone?”

“Is she an airbender like us?”

“Why didn’t you or Aunt Lin try to find her before?”

“Okay! Kids, that’s enough questions.”

Pema had put her hand over Meelo’s mouth as she eyed Lin nervously. Tenzin took in a deep breath, answering as many questions as he could.

“I know it’s a confusing situation. Yes, you have another sister but I’m not going anywhere. She’s actually a little older than Jinora and an earthbender like Lin. And we didn’t know she was alive until a couple days ago.”

Tenzin looked over to Lin who hadn’t said anything in several minutes, her eyes staring determinedly at the floor. Ikki walked over and sat down next to her, taking her hand in her own.

“It’s okay if you didn’t know she was alive, I’m sure everything will be okay now.”

Ikki smiled brightly and Lin looked to her. She studied the girl’s face for a full minute before she finally lost her composure, pulling her hand from Ikki’s and standing up quickly. They all stared at her as she felt her breathing became uneven.

“I don’t need sympathy from any of you!”

Lin walked across the room, crossing her arms and turning her back to them. Ikki’s eyes filled with tears that she tried to stop from falling by blinking rapidly and looking down.

“Lin!”

Kya brushed a gentle finger against Ikki’s cheek as she walked to Lin, looking angry for the first time.

“I know you’ve got a lot going on but that was rude. Ikki is just a kid and-“

“I really don’t need a lecture from you right now. Just leave me alone.”

“No. Lin, I’m not-“

“JUST GO, KYA. I DON’T NEED YOU! I DON’T NEED ANYONE!”

Kya visibly flinched as she recoiled, slowly stepping away from the earthbender. She turned and made eye contact with Tenzin, pleading with her tear filled eyes to try and help. Even after all these years he was still important to Lin. He was her best friend. Pema caught on first, snatching Rohan off the couch.

“Hey kids, let’s go outside and wait for Korra. Kya, could you help me with this lot?”

They left quickly, Kya pausing for a moment to squeeze Tenzin’s arm as she looked back to Lin one more time before leaving the pair of them alone.

“Lin…”

“Don’t you start with me too, Tenzin.”

He didn’t push further as she started pacing, purposely not looking at him as she thought out loud.

“What kind of mother doesn’t know her own kid is still alive.”

She stopped dead in her tracks as the weight of her own words hit her. She quickly covered her mouth as a sob came out. It’s the stone that finally broke the dam and she dropped to her knees, letting out loud gasps as her entire body shook from the emotional breakdown she had been building to for days. Unsure of what else to do Tenzin moved to her, kneeling down and pulling her into a hug.

She clung to him, burying her face against his chest. He just held her, several minutes going by before her breathing started to even out. Now she only hiccupped slightly every time she swallowed, finally pulling away to look at him.

“I did regret it, you know. Not trying again with you.”

He wasn’t sure what to say to that as he watched silent tears still leaking from her eyes. She let out a small laugh at the look on his face.

“Don’t worry. I’m glad things worked out the way they did with me and Kya. It’s just… I’m so scared for her, Ten.”

He smiled at her, taking ahold of both her arms as he got them both on their feet.

“KORRA’S HERE!”

There was a loud commotion from outside and the pair of them just stared at each other for a moment. Tenzin took her hand and brought it to his lips in a gentle, but quick kiss.

“We’ll find her.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So this story takes place when Lin is about 57 so 3 years after the last season of LOK and 7 years after the first season. I like to think that Lin and Tenzin mended their friendship a bit after they reconnected and that he was her best friend again. I thought it was very reasonable that he'd be able to (platonically) comfort her. You don't have that much history with someone without retaining a level of understanding for each other's needs.
> 
> It's all platonic for this fic though. Lin would never do to someone else what was done to her, least of for Tenzin...


	10. Chapter Nine

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm working through some writers block issues but I think I've got them figured out. Thanks for sticking around!

“Absolutely not.”

“Lin, it’s the best option-“

“No, Korra. I won’t let you put yourself in danger-“

“Well, you’re not the boss of me and I want to do it!”

“Korra…”

“No Lin! You’ve put yourself in danger for me countless times and I’m the Avatar! I’ll be fine!”

“ENOUGH!”

Korra went silent, staring at her sheepishly as everyone else looked around. It felt like the entire island had tremored when she yelled, a couple photos even falling off the wall, the glass panes shattering when they hit the ground. Lin covered her mouth quickly in surprise, she hadn’t lost control of her own bending like that in years.

“I need some air.”

Lin didn’t give any of them a chance to say anything before stepping out the door, stooping to sit on the stairs leading to Tenzin’s home. She struggled to get her breathing under control as a deep pressure built up in her chest. She didn’t know what to do. They hadn’t made any progress in figuring out where her daughter was being held and if she didn’t get her emotions under control she was going to damage something she couldn’t fix.

She was just feeling so much guilt. Partially for the way she kept losing control and lashing out at the people who loved her but also because how useless the police were in finding just one young woman. If it hadn’t come out that Rei was her daughter would there even be this much of an effort going into finding her? When this was all over she was going to personally be sure they did better in the future.

But she needed to find Rei first. And make the people who took her pay for it. She felt someone approach and took in another calming breath, determined to keep a level head.

“I understand that you’re upset but we have to do _something._ ”

“Korra…”

The Avatar dropped down on the step next to Lin, kicking a small stone down the rest of the stairs. Lin tilted her head back, closing her eyes against the darkening sky before looking to the young girl.

“I want to find her more than anyone. Spirits, I don’t think any of you even know how badly I need to find her but I’m not willing to put someone else’s life in danger, especially not someone as important as the Avatar.”

“But-“

“No. There’s no argument to be had. We’ll find Rei but we’re going to do it without putting you at risk. That’s final.”

Korra was ready to continue the argument, once again reminding Lin so much of herself but a fresh pair of voices cut them both off.

“Korra, I think Lin may have a point.”

“And no offense, kid, but she’s the kind of stubborn you only wish you could be.”

Korra looked over her shoulder and Lin bowed her head, the hint of a smile on her face. Asami moved to sit by Korra while Kya leaned lazily against the doorframe. Not for the first time, Lin wondered what she had done to deserve Kya as she turned to her with a look that seemed to say “ _are we okay?”_ Kya only smiled sadly before given a tiny nod, _“we’re okay.”_

“Okay, so if we’re not going to use me as bait how exactly are we going to get to Rei? We don’t even know where she is?”

It was true. Chen, Mako, Saikhan, and even Lu were all working tirelessly with a small team of investigators back in the city while Lin and the others searched for any kind of clues that might help give them the break they needed. It had already been 5 days. She knew from experience that they needed to make some progress soon or the odds of finding her daughter were going to start dwindling rapidly.

It was all just too much. Lin needed to be doing something more, she was no use hiding away on the island feeling sorry for herself. And she definitely wasn’t going to risk any of the people she cared about getting hurt. Her thoughts raced, bouncing from idea to idea until she settled on the only way that made sense, logically. She had made a silent decision, standing and walking to Kya. She kissed the waterbender gently on the cheek.

“I need to clear my head.”

Kya didn’t say anything as Lin turned from her and walked down the stairs but she heard Korra jump up and start following her.

“Lin! Where are you going?”

She stopped and turned to the young Avatar, placing a hand on both of her shoulders as she stared at her sincerely.

“Thank you, Korra. It means a lot that you would be willing to risk so much for myself and my family. But I need to figure out another way.”

She looked at Kya and Asami over Korra’s shoulder and smiled to them.

“I’m going to the station to see if there’s something I may have missed. I just need some time alone right now.”

Korra seemed to want to argue again but Lin was thankful when she just let out a breath and nodded slowly.

“Wait!”

Kya called out to Lin, disappearing into the house for a moment before remerging with Lin’s usual signature trench coat. She jogged down the steps to where they stood, Korra stepping back as Kya helped her pull the coat around her. They stared at each for a moment, not needing to say anything before Lin turned from her and made her way down the rest of the stairs.

* * *

Lin originally had every intention of going to the police station. She fastened the buttons up the front of her coat, pausing when she got to the spot where her badge laid affixed to its usual spot on her armor. Nearly a dozen officers were already at the station working on the case, they didn’t need her. 

She needed to find her daughter. And she wasn’t going to let anyone get hurt for something that was her responsibility. She was Rei’s mother and she would find her on her own, outside the law if she had to. The decision had already been made. She flicked the badge from her chest before she finished buttoning the coat. It made a small _clink_ against the stone path as she made her way towards the ferry, adjusting her coat and pulling it tight around her.


	11. Chapter Ten

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Double chapter update because you deserve it! 
> 
> Had to check in with Rei's side of the story one more time. The next time you see her will be from Lin's POV ;)

Rei was bored.

There was really no other word for it. When she had first learned the truth of her past and identity she was angry, ready to confront her captors. But now it had been 2 days and she hadn’t had any contact with another person aside from the food and water that was shoved into her cell twice a day.

She was somewhat glad she had been left alone because if she had reacted the way she was feeling 2 days ago she very likely would have gotten herself killed. Now she had a plan. They obviously wanted her for something and if she followed along with whatever they had planned she just might be able to stay alive long enough to find someone to help her.

Another part of her time in solitude was spent thinking about her parents. Her apparently very famous parents. She had seen Chief Beifong in the papers dozens of times but always glossed over the articles. She didn’t care much for the politics of Republic City and it seemed most of the city’s current reporters were more interested in gossip than real news. She would have given anything to read some of those articles right now.

And then there was her father. She didn’t even know the former councilman had been in a relationship with the Chief of Police. If they had even been together in the first place. Maybe her mother kidnapping her had been a blessing in disguise to the pair of them because they were having an adulterous love affair. It would explain why no one had ever gone looking for her. But she had a feeling there was a different explanation for that particular mystery.

She let out a long sigh as she stared up at the wooden ceiling. There was a movement outside the door and she immediately sat up. Her dinner had already been delivered and nobody ever came to visit her. She heard a jingling of metal keys and she cursed herself for not prioritizing her bending training more over the years. Her mother was a waterbender and she had never felt much need to hone her earthbending skills. And metalbending had never even crossed her mind.

“Good evening, Rei.”

She faced the man from before, crossing her arms in defiance as she tried desperately to keep her face from betraying the new information she had discovered.

“You drop a bombshell like that and then I don’t see you for two days, great hospitality.”

He chuckled and she felt the hairs on the back of her neck prickle.

“I apologize for that. I had to step away for an important meeting and it took a little longer than expected. But I’m here now. I’m sure you have questions.”

“You told me the Avatar murdered my parents, of course I have questions.”

He held his hand out in front of him as if gesturing her to continue.

“Um, well… I guess my main question is what do you want with me? Why did you kidnap me?”

He smiled again, taking a few steps towards her. Every instinct told her to back away but she held steady, not breaking eye contact with him.

“We need your help. The Avatar has gone unchecked for too long and the people deserve to know the truth. You can help us reveal that truth.”

She started to get a little clarity as the pieces began to fall into place. They wanted the Avatar. They didn’t care about her or even her true family. They were using her ignorance to their advantage so they could capture the Avatar and… and… she had an idea.

“What are you going to do to the Avatar?”

“We’re going to make her tell the world the truth of what the Avatar represents. And then we’ll pass judgement on her.”

“No.”

“Rei, I know it’s difficult to understand-“

“No, _you_ don’t understand. The Avatar killed my parents. I don’t care about the truth, I want to kill her.”

The man’s face grew into a wicked smile as he turned to look over his shoulder at his cohort. He turned back to her, walking closer and wrapping an arm around her neck. Once again, she fought the urge to recoil as she let herself be led to the door and out of the cell.

The hallway was dark and narrow and she figured they must be somewhere underground. Once she stepped out of the wooden cell she could fell the vague thrum of the earth somewhere beneath her feet. She felt her heartrate quicken as she rapidly tried to come up with plan. She had never had any combat training and her bending was mediocre at best. The only thing she knew for sure was that she in way over her head.

They rounded a corner and she caught sight of a door at the end of the hallway. A door with a bright white light shining through the small glass window. They turned another corner and entered a different hallway, a hallway with a stone floor. It wasn’t like her to launch herself into a crazy, reckless idea so readily but before she knew what she was doing she stomped her foot on the ground and tripped both the men who accompanied her by launching sections of the floor up in front of their feet.

They hit the ground hard and she didn’t hesitate before she turned back down the other hallway and towards the door to freedom.

Except the door didn’t lead to the outside world.

She pushed it open and found herself in a large alcove with bright white lights hanging from the ceiling. As soon as she launched her body through the door she realized she was completely surrounded by at least 2 dozen people. Oh, she was in big trouble now. Panicking she darted to the side, running as fast as she could towards another door across the room.

“Stop her!”

Her captors had caught up with her and before she had time to react she heard an odd sizzling sound before something connected with her middle and the world once again went dark.

* * *

Kurai yelled in frustration.

They had thrown the girl back in her wooden cell to rot and he was now trashing the small room he had been using as an office. He just didn’t understand what had happened. His story had been a risky move and there were definitely some holes in his timeline but the way she reacted was so extreme. As if she had learned the truth. He just didn’t know how…

“Boss, what should we do now?”

Good question. If the girl knew the truth then maybe the police Chief and her band of heroes did too. It was time for a shift in strategy.

“Bring me a pen and paper.”

He carefully scribbled the simple note before passing it to Lao to deliver.

_“Bring us the Avatar if you ever want the chance to meet your daughter”_

Maybe their problem had been that they had spent too long operating in the shadows. It was time to put it all out in the open and make a direct move.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Quick note. Rei is not a fighter. She had no reason to ever learn combat training growing up so she is absolutely no match for anyone with actual fighting experience. But, she does have Beifong blood there is a little bit of natural ability there.


	12. Chapter Eleven

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This chapter honestly helped get back into writing this fic. I love writing Kya and I feel like her voice has been a bit lacking. And I'm a sucker for awkward sibling interactions.

The afternoon after Lin had left Kya found herself in a daze as she stared out over the sparkling water towards the city. Everyone else was eating lunch but her appetite hadn’t been what it usually was the last few days. She was trying so hard to stay strong for Lin and her brother and everyone but it was taking its toll on her.

“Hey.”

Kya tensed as Tenzin walked to her side. He didn’t look at her but mirrored her gaze as he, too stared to the city. To where Lin was. They stood there for several minutes in awkward silence.

“Do you regret it, Ten? What happened with Lin-“

“Yes.”

“Yeah. I thought so.”

Kya had spent her entire life living in the shadow of her family’s legacy and never feeling like she was enough for any of them. Then her brother made the biggest mistake of his life by giving up Lin fucking Beifong and his loss eventually became her gain. And everything was great. Both she and Lin had their issues but they were older now and working through them. They were both so blissfully happy, they were healing.

But now.

Now it felt like all the progress of the last 20 years was in danger of collapsing in on itself. Of course Kya was happy that Lin might actually have a second chance with a daughter she thought long lost but she just wasn’t sure where she was going to fit in in that new future. It was the uncertainty that threatened her most. If this had been a different time in her life she would have already fled, running away and leaving her problems behind her. But things were different now. She was a different person.

And she loved Lin.

Spirits, it sometimes scared her how much she could love a person. And there it was. The reality was she didn’t care about the potentially complicated family dynamic or awkward interactions with a kid she barely knew existed. No, it was the fear of losing what she had with Lin that was eating her alive.

She looked away from Tenzin as her eyes filled with tears.

“Kya?”

“Lin regrets it too. I know she does.”

She felt a hand on her shoulder and finally faced him. He smiled at her sadly, wiping a stray tear across her cheek.

“I do regret how things ended. But because of how badly it hurt Lin. I’ve spent a lot of time thinking about what my life may have been like if I had stayed with Lin and I do think we could’ve been happy if the circumstances had been different. But…”

He turned to look over his shoulder and into the house where his children laughed, Pema bustling around them and practically glowing as she doting on them.

“But I can also say with equal conviction that I don’t regret any of it because if things hadn’t gone so poorly with Lin at the end there I wouldn’t have any of this.”

He gestured to his home before turning back to her.

“And Lin wouldn’t have found you.”

Kya let out a small laugh, sniffing as she wiped a hand across her nose. He was completely right. Without their respective pasts they wouldn’t even be standing where they were in this moment in time. They couldn’t change the choices they had made all those years ago but they could learn from them. She just needed to keep herself together so maybe she and Lin could come out of it as strong as ever.

“Since when did you become so wise? You sound like dad.”

She playfully nudged him in the shoulder and they both chuckled.

“I am happy for you Kya. You know that, right? I’m happy that you have each other.”

Kya’s smile turned wicked.

“Even after that time you walked in on us while Lin had her legs wrapped around-“

“Kya… please.”

“What’s the matter, little bro? Don’t want to compare notes? We could ask Lin the next time we see her which one of us is the better-“

“Pema!”

Tenzin cleared his throat loudly as he turned to where his wife stood in the doorway, looking completely frustrated. His entire head was the color of a tomato and Kya stifled a laugh. Getting Tenzin worked up never got old. It had become a new level of entertaining once she had gotten with Lin and discovered just how much she could make him blush. Lin too, though she had to deal with Kya’s antics so often that they were starting to lose their effect on her.

“Kya, I actually need you.”

The waterbender pulled herself together as she turned to the younger woman.

“It’s Rohan. He is refusing to eat his soup unless “Aunt Kya uses her magic to make soup animals”. I’ve tried everything.”

Kya felt her heart melt a bit as she grinned broadly. She gave Tenzin another playful nudge, a bit harder this time as she breezed past Pema.

Rohan was the only one left at the table, sitting resolutely on the floor with both his arms and legs crossed.

“Well well well, what do we have here?”

His demeanor immediately changed as he uncrossed his arms and legs, bouncing up and down excitedly. Kya sat down across from him and peered dramatically into his bowl, recoiling with an exaggerated face as she winked at him.

“Do the magic! Do the magic!”

He knew very well that bending wasn’t magic but he hadn’t been around many waterbenders in his life and none of them were as cool as his Aunt Kya. She rubbed her hands together vigorously and closed her eyes like she was deep in concentration. She opened one just a bit to peek at her youngest nephew. He was staring at her transfixed and she smirked before moving her arms in unnecessary flourishes.

She bent the soup broth into a dozen miniature lemurs, making them flap and fly around Rohan’s head as he laughed with utter delight. As they circled his head for the third time she brought them together to form an air bison that roared silently before breaking apart again into a gaggle of turtleducks. She directed one of them towards her nephew’s mouth and he opened it wide, gleefully chomping down on the innocent soup creature.

This went on for several minutes as Kya came up with new animals to form the dwindling soup into, strategically getting him to eat the food while still keeping his attention. A single bit remained but before she could think of her grand finale Korra and Asami came bursting into the kitchen.

“You have to see this!”

Kya was so startled that she lost her concentration and the last bit of soup fell onto the table with a soft _splash_. Pema and Tenzin appeared in the doorway, Pema walking to Rohan and carefully picking him up. Korra was angry. That girl wore her emotions on her sleeves. She slammed a paper down on the table hard enough that Rohan’s empty bowl toppled off the edge with a clatter.

Kya leaned over to look at the headline and felt her stomach drop.

**_POLICE CHIEF’S SECRET LOVE CHILD KIDNAPPED_ **

She didn’t even need to read the article. She needed to get to Lin before she saw it. As if on cue, the phone started to ring. Korra was closest to it and without waiting for Tenzin she angrily picked it up.

“What?! Oh, sorry Mako. Yes, we saw it. How am I supposed to know! Will you just-“

“Korra, give that to me.”

The young Avatar huffed as Tenzin calmly took the phone from her.

“Mako, it’s Tenzin. Let me talk to Lin.”

Kya noticed the change in his demeanor immediately.

“I see. No, no. It’ll be best not to do anything until we get there. Yes. We’re leaving now.”

He hung up and looked directly at her. She could already feeling her own anger bubbling before he spoke the words she knew were coming.

“Apparently nobody at the station has seen or heard from Lin for a couple days.”

“That stubborn, _idiot!_ I am going to kill her! Let’s go!”

Kya stood abruptly as she let out a loud groan, throwing her hands up in frustration as she walked towards the door. Tenzin, Korra, and Asami followed closely behind her and for once she wished she was an earthbender just so the stomping of her feet against the ground made more of impact as they booked it towards where Oogi sat waiting for them.

* * *

Mako paced absentmindedly as he waited for them to arrive. It was a trait he hadn’t even realized he had picked up from his mentor and boss. The whole station had been in complete chaos since the paper had dropped. The phones were ringing off the hook and officers from other divisions kept pestering them for information. Mako worked quickly with Chen and Saikhan to try and keep the details under wraps but it felt like they were fighting a losing battle.

He let out an audible sigh of relief when Kya, Tenzin, Korra, and Asami came bustling in.

“I’m so glad you’re here, everything has been such a circus since the story broke.”

“Have you gotten any new information?”

“No. The phones having been ringing non-stop but it’s mostly been nosy reporters looking for fresh gossip.”

He looked around, noticing a few officers pretending to be on the phone so they could listen in. He motioned for them to follow him as he led them into the Chief’s empty office. They fanned out, Korra hopping up onto the desk while Asami leaned casually against it. Tenzin stood in the doorway with his arms folded and Kya stood with her back to them all as she stared through the window that overlooked the rest of the station.

“So, how long has the Chief been MIA?”

“Yesterday. She said she needed some space and that she was coming here.”

He let out a breath as Korra angrily kicked her feet against the front of the desk.

“I just don’t understand why she would lie to us!”

“Korra, I’m sure Lin thought it was for the best.”

“So what! She still should have just told us what she was doing.”

“Would you have let her go alone if she had told you the truth?”

Mako watched as Asami gently took Korra’s hand as she gave her a knowing look.

“Well, no. But…”

Mako stopped listening as he caught sight of Kya again. She had a look he hadn’t seen on her face before. He raised a hand to Korra, ignoring her indignant scoff as she looked to the waterbender. Mako walked over to her and tried to see what she saw.

“What is it?”

“I just had a thought…”

She looked to him before turning to face the others.

“How did the papers find out?”

“What?”

“There’s only one way that the papers would have gotten so many specific details.”

Mako felt his heart sink as the realization hit him. How hadn’t he figured it out sooner? Korra hopped off the desk and walked to them.

“You don’t think…”

“There’s a rat in the police station.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Shoutout to soakinginthesun for figuring out there was leak in the police station. I nearly squealed with delete when I got that comment! Definitely made my day!


	13. Chapter Twelve

“It might not even be an officer, the station isn’t exactly a private place.”

“Yeah, could be someone looking to make some quick cash.”

“No.”

They all turned to Kya who looked like her brain was working in overdrive.

“The note Lin got. It has to be someone who has worked directly on the case. Someone who has direct contact with whoever took Rei. They knew that we knew.”

Mako locked his fingers together behind his neck as he let out a long breath. She was right. And they should have realized it sooner, _he_ should have realized.

“So what do we do now?”

He watched as Kya studied her for a moment before an idea seemed to strike her.

“Korra, has Lin taught you how to use your earthbending to find out if someone is lying?”

“I asked her once and she told me she wasn’t very good at it and that I’m even worse… but I can do it a little.”

“Mako, I need you to gather everyone assigned to the case in the same room.”

About half an hour later they all gathered in the main bullpen. Saikhan looked at him expectantly and it felt wrong to Mako not to fill him in but he didn’t trust any of them right now. Kya and Korra stood at opposite sides of him while Tenzin and Asami strategically blocked the exits in case anyone tried to make a break for it.

“Now what?”

Korra muttered under her breath so only he and Kya could hear. The waterbender only looked to her and gave her a slight nod. Mako felt Korra shift her position, her bare feet planted firmly against the floor.

“We know one of you is leaking information about the case involving Chief Beifong and her family. I want to know who it is.”

The room immediately started buzzing. Most of the officers faces showed surprise or confusion but others some were so unfazed by anything that their faces didn’t betray anything. He looked to Korra who had closed her eyes in concentration. After almost a minute her face relaxed and she pointed without looking.

“There. I think it’s him.”

They all looked to where she pointed and Mako felt his blood boil.

_Lu._

He should have known. He had been surprised when the disgraced detective had volunteered to help but he had just brushed it off as him trying to suck up to the Chief to get his old job back. He stood up, raising his hands in innocence as Kya crossed the room and grabbed him by the front of his shirt.

“I-I-I don’t know what you’re talking about. It wasn’t me!”

Kya looked around, eyes settling on the door to an interrogation room before she dragged him towards it. Tenzin and Korra followed them in to the room while Mako convinced Saikhan to stand watch with Asami outside the door.

Kya shoved Lu into a chair while Korra latched the metal handcuffs around his wrists.

“Ow! Easy there, that’s a little tight!”

Tenzin suddenly moved, grabbing ahold of his sister as the waterbender launched herself at the man, her fist connecting with the side of his face with a loud _smack_. He held her firmly for a moment while she gathered herself, letting go cautiously and not keeping his eyes off of her. They needed answers and they wouldn’t get them if Lu was unconscious.

Korra made the move to sit in the chair across from him but Mako stopped her. She looked ready to argue with him but he gave her a look and after a moment she nodded him in approval as Mako carefully sat down and studied Lu’s face.

“Oh, look at you. You a bigshot detective now?”

Mako didn’t react, he just stared into the man’s eyes. He was always more bark than bite and the fact that he was already making digs at him meant he was nervous.

“When you helped frame me all those years ago I knew exactly what kind of man you were. That you’re a complete disgrace to the police force and that you’ll never live up to level of integrity that Lin Beifong expects from all of us.”

Lu shifted in his seat but his face was still smug as he narrowed his eyes at Mako.

“You’re lucky the Chief didn’t do more than demote you. I never understood why she let you off so easy but that’s what she does. She may not always say it but she believes in people and gives them second chances. And you repay her by betraying her. So now you’re going to start making up for that betrayal by telling us what you know.”

He laughed. He actually laughed.

“That was some speech, kid. Question is, if what you say is true, what exactly are you going to do about it?”

Korra made a move but Kya put a hand her shoulder to stop her as she watched him with wide eyes. Mako laid his hands flat on top of the metal table and he could feel them all watching as the metal got red, the heat moving towards where Lu’s hands were bound to the table. It made contact and he let out a yelp.

“What do you think you’re doing?!”

“Mako, that’s enough.”

“No, Mako. Keep going. Tenzin, if you can’t handle this you need to leave.”

It was Kya’s turn to hold her brother back and as Mako increased the temperature, Tenzin turned to face the wall. Sweat was beading on Lu’s face and he was desperately trying to keep any part of his body from touching the table. The handcuffs were heating up and the skin around his wrists started to get visibly red. Mako pushed it further and Lu flinched.

“Okay! I’ll tell you what I know! It’s not much, but I’ll tell you just please stop!”

Mako let up and Kya immediately started to heal the man’s burns. He didn’t deserve the kindness but she was a healer and he realized she was most likely protecting Mako. There couldn’t be an evidence of his unconventional interrogation tactics.

“I don’t know much about who they are, just that they’re old Red Lotus loyalists. I know they’ve got some super-secret base somewhere outside the city but I swear I don’t know where it is.”

He looked to Korra.

“He’s telling the truth. But there’s something else, isn’t there?”

Mako put his hands back on the table.

“Y-yes. My contact. I just spoke with him. I-I… I told them the Chief was coming for them. They’re waiting for her.”

* * *

Lin didn’t know exactly where should be looking but after spending the last day interrogating several local crime lords she had a pretty good idea that the compound she was currently standing in front of was the right one. It wasn’t that far outside the city but it extended so deeply into the side of a mountain it was easy to miss the simple front façade.

Her seismic sense had given her a decent idea of just how deep it went and how well guarded the place was. She could easily get through the first door but she could sense at least 8 bodies in the chamber beyond that. She didn’t mind the odds but she needed to make sure this was the right place first. She needed to know that Rei was actually inside.

It took nearly an hour of impatient waiting before someone finally exited the compound. In a single movement she quickly brought the earth up and around the man’s feet, wrapping her cables around his middle and quickly covering his mouth as she pulled him against her.

“I swear I will end your life right now if make a sound. Do you understand?”

He nodded and Lin could feel his erratic heartbeat. She wasn’t as skilled at lie detecting as her mother but she believed he was scared enough to not try anything stupid. Pulling them both into the privacy of the tree line he turned him around to face her. His eyes got wide in recognition but he didn’t say anything.

“Is there a girl here? A young earthbender girl being kept as a prisoner?”

He looked around nervously as if hoping to find someone who might be able to help him. He resigned himself to the reality that there was no one and sighed.

“Yes. She’s here.”

Lin felt her own heartbeat quicken. That was all she needed to know. She retracted her cables before waving him off.

“Go. Run. And I swear if you speak to _anyone_ , I will know and I will find you.”

He didn’t need to be told twice as his face paled before he turned and ran in the opposite direction of the compound, towards Republic City.

Lin approached the compound, slamming her foot to the ground one more time to get an idea of what she would be facing once she breached the doors. A surprise attack was her only option and she’d only get one chance at it. There were seven bodies moving around.

She closed her eyes and sprinted the rest of the way to main door, blasting it open by shooting a pillar of earth through it while she simultaneously bent the metal into a big enough hole for her to run through. The two perimeter guards were already down from her initial attack but the others were heavily armed with a variety of weapons.

They had been waiting for her.

She dodged a blast of fire purely on instinct, encasing two of them in earth and sinking them down before she was knocked to the ground by a blast of water from behind. She turned to face the waterbender, shooting her cables out to wrap around his wrists and swinging him into one of the others. The firebender attacked again and the flame hit her arm, heating the bracer on her left arm. She immediately bent the bracer off before it could burn her and launched it at him, encasing part of his arm and using it to pin him against the wall.

The large, platinum door that lead to the rest of the compound opened and she felt her heart sink as it revealed a couple dozen additional guards. They had definitely been waiting for her because before she had time to react she was blasted backwards again by a jet of water from three separate waterbenders. She was completely soaked and so was the ground around her but they didn’t get any closer. She quickly got up and started sprinting towards them when she heard something whistle as it flew through the air, landing on the ground near her. She heard the familiar sizzle of electricity before it coursed through her whole body, causing her to cry out before she hit the ground and everything went black.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> And now we've come to the final act! There's still a decent chunk for me to write but we've reached the turning point!


	14. Chapter Thirteen

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Warning for some light torturey stuff. Nothing bad but I gotta rough Lin up a little more because that's just who I am.
> 
> As always, thank you for your continued comments! I read them all and truly appreciate them =)

Lin groaned as she slowly regained consciousness. Her head was pounding and there was a throbbing in her torso that likely meant she had bruised a couple ribs from the fight with the guards. She took in her current position and first noticed she was sitting up. Opening her eyes she found herself attached to a wooden chair in the middle of a large room with tall ceilings.

Her hands were encased completely in metal and secured tight against the arms of the chair. She had been stripped of her armor, sitting only in a white tank top and her dark pants. Her feet were bare and she felt a moment of triumph when she found she could easily wiggle her toes. The bottom section of her legs were also covered in platinum and secured to the legs of the chair but if she could maneuver her feet enough she should still be able to bend.

Lin had a moment of panic when she tried to summon the earth through her feet. Visions of a rainy night and the masked face of Amon rushing into her mind. She looked a little closer and realized she was actually on a slightly raised wooden platform with a platinum lined indentation in the top. As her senses started to fully return she could feel the coolness of water against her feet, the area around her chair completely surrounded by it.

Looking around the room, she noticed a pair of wires that were affixed to the edge of her platform, leading to a corner of the room and attaching to what looked like a large generator.

A door somewhere behind her opened and three men came into view. One didn’t even look at her as he walked over to the generator and flipped a switch. Immediately Lin could hear the all too familiar hum of electricity and she suddenly suspected she knew what happened when those metal cables were activated.

Another of the men stood directly in front of her and he looking at her with a horrifying smile on his face. The third man took a more defensive position behind him, his cold eyes staring through her.

“I expected an attack from you, Chief Beifong, but I have to admit I never thought you’d be stupid enough to come alone.”

Lin growled.

“What do-“

Her question was cut off as the man in the corner pushed a button before flipping a switch, a surge of electricity instantly coursing through her body. It wasn’t strong enough for her to lose consciousness but it still made every nerve in her body pulse with pain.

“You’ll only speak if I ask you a question.”

She was panting slightly as she looked to him with nothing but hatred in her eyes.

“We’ve studied you and your friends for many years now. And it seems that the electric weapons created by Hiroshi Sato are still the most effective counter to even the most skilled benders.”

He took a step closer, leaning over the platform as he grinned at her.

“Now. I want you tell me where the Avatar is.”

Lin didn’t reply, pursing her lips in defiant silence.

He leaned back and gave a slight nod over his shoulder. Lin couldn’t help the scream that came out as she was hit with another jolt of electricity. She was beyond over the feeling and she made a mental note to tell Asami how much she hated Future Enterprises. She was wheezing as she struggled to get her breathing under control. He didn't even give her time to recover before trying again.

“Tell me where the Avatar is.”

“No.”

She braced herself for the shock but it didn’t come. Instead, the man just gave a look to guard who stood behind him before turning back to Lin. He didn’t break eye contact with her as the other man shot out a controlled flame at her. She closed her eyes on instinct the blow didn’t come. She opened her eyes and saw the flame hitting the metal cage her hands were trapped in. The metal was only slightly warm but he didn’t stop the flame and Lin realized things could get very bad very quickly. She needed to keep a level head and think of _something._ She balled her hand into a fist in anger and got an idea.

“Where is Avatar Korra?”

She didn’t reply and the intensity of the flame increased. The metal got hotter and she could feel it starting to burn her hands and wrists but she could also feel the integrity of it start to weaken. She started strategically moving her hand around as much she could, her eyes tearing up as she let out a cry of pain. The skin on her wrists was as red as the metal but she didn’t stop trying to reshape the malleable metal into an opening big enough to slip her hand through. The flame retreated but the metal still burned, she wouldn’t be surprised if she had blisters on her hands. But she wiggled her hand around and was satisfied to find the opening near her wrist had gotten slightly wider. It wasn’t much but she might be able to get her hand out.

“This only gets worse for you, Chief Beifong. It’s in your best interests for you tell me what I want to know.”

Lin had to stop herself from letting out a scoff. This man obviously didn’t know her as well as he thought if he expected her to act based off what was in her best interests. But she needed to play the game. Once the pain from the burns set in she wouldn’t be able to do much of anything, she had to make her move now.

She dropped her head in apparent defeat.

“Okay. I’ll tell you where to find Korra.”

She used a breathy, quiet voice, the man leaning closer to her just as she had hoped. She looked to him and was pleased to see what looked like a metal pen clipped to his pocket. It was all she would need. She would have to break her thumb to get her hand out and she’d have to do it quickly. She didn’t give herself time to overthink before she took in a deep breath and yanked her right hand from its metal prison.

Lin couldn’t stop the scream of pain as she felt her thumb break, possibly dislocating, as her blistered hand scraped against the metal. She didn’t waste time focusing on the damage she had done as she summoned the metal pen, bending it into a point and shooting it towards her captors chest.

She moved quickly but the electrician was quicker. The metal clattered to the ground, her entire body convulsing as the current ran through her. She didn’t even have time to think as the world flashed white as she went limp against the chair.

* * *

“If we split off into separate teams we can cover more ground.”

“We don’t have time for this!”

Kya slumped into a chair, her head in her hands. Lin had run full steam into a trap and they had no idea where she was. If she had just told her what she was planning they could have helped. But that wasn’t how Lin operated. And it drove Kya mad. She was frustrated and angry but mostly she was afraid. She couldn’t lose Lin.

“I know. But we have to start somewhere. We can’t just sit here and do nothing.”

Mako was just as frustrated as she was. Lin meant a lot to him as well even if neither of them would ever admit it out loud. He and Kya were in Lin’s office staring at a large map of the city and surrounding land. Asami and Korra had gone to get food and Tenzin was calling some of his contacts to try and find some kind of lead.

“Mako! Where’s Mako!”

There was a commotion outside and Kya jumped up, following Mako as he ran from the office. Bolin was panting, running to them.

“Bolin! What are you doing here?”

“We know where Lin is!”

He was still struggling to catch his breath as Mako grabbed the front of his shirt.

“What?!”

“What do you mean, _we?_ ”

Kya’s question was answered a moment later when Opal walked in followed by Suyin. The elder Beifong had a firm grip on a wiry looking man as she practically dragged him up the stairs. They joined the group and Su pushed the man towards Mako.

“Tell them what you told me.”

“i-I-I…”

The man let out a yelp as Su prodded him hard in the back with her fist. Kya had never seen the younger woman looking so unhinged. For the first time since they were kids Su looked like Lin.

“I’ll tell you what I know, just keep _her_ away from me.”

He gestured to Su, flinching as she made a threatening gesture with her hands. Kya put a hand on Su’s shoulder, putting herself between the earthbender and the terrified man.

“Please, tell us what you know.”

“Okay, okay. I was attacked earlier by Chief Beifong. She was asking about a girl, a prisoner they’re keeping in a compound outside the city. I was hired along with a dozen others to guard the place. She told me she would kill me if I told anyone. I can bring you there if you promise I won’t get in trouble for my role in everything.”

Relief flooded through Kya for the first time in days. She wasn’t even listening as Mako assured the man there’d be no consequences as long as he cooperated fully and his information was good. All she could think about was getting to Lin.

Not too long after they had all gathered. Kya, Mako, Tenzin, Korra, Asami, Bolin, Opal, Su, Chen, and a half dozen officers Saikhan had assigned to the young detective to help aid in the rescue effort. They had to keep as stealthy as possible so Tenzin, Korra, and Opal were going to use gliders to airbend their way to the compound while carrying Kya, Mako, and Bolin. Asami, Su, and the others would follow behind them in an airship.

“If things go poorly I have Jinora, Bumi and the other airbenders on standby in the skies to get any injured out of there as quickly as possible. Su, can we expect reinforcements from Zaofu?”

“I couldn’t leave the city completely defenseless but I tasked the twins with getting help before I left. They should hopefully be here soon.”

Tenzin nodded and they all broke a part. They had made their way to the roof of the police station and Kya walked up to her brother, looking out over the city.

“This is going to work, right?”

He looked uncertain but nodded none the less as he clipped the glider to his back. The others were already in position and Tenzin held a hand out to her. He wrapped a simple harness around her middle and got a good hold on her as they approached the edge of the rooftop. A moment before they jumped her got close to her ear, whispering loud enough for only her to hear.

“Let’s go get our girls.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> If I put a little more effort into this I would love to explore how more of the characters are feeling but I'm honestly just too lazy for that. I'm already thinking about doing a rewrite/update of this one once I finish it because I'm actually quite please with it, it just needs some better editing.


	15. Chapter Fourteen

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> There's actually a few more chapters left on this but it's close to the end!

The next time Lin opened her eyes she was still sitting in the chair but both her arms were now completely encased in metal up to her shoulder. Her hands throbbed and she almost cried out when she tried to move her thumb. Her vision was still fuzzy and she blinked several times to try and clear it. She wasn’t exactly sure how, but she thought they must be watching her somehow because a minute after regaining consciousness she heard the door open and her captor once again stood before her.

“Glad to see you’re awake. Shall we try this again?”

“Do whatever you want to me, I’m not going to tell you anything.”

“I can see that now, Chief. Which is why I’m going to hurt her instead.”

Lin’s blood froze in her veins as a young woman was dragged into her view, a guard on either side holding her up. Her arms and legs were bound in more simple versions of her own restraints and she was gagged and blindfolded. Her hair was dark and fell past her shoulders, her skin pale but with a rosy tint to her cheeks. They pulled off the blindfold and Lin stopped breathing as she found herself staring into her own eyes. She let out a strangled gasp as she struggled to stop her tears. She was here. She was alive. She was _real._ Lin nearly forgot about the interrogation as her world stopped and she just took in the sight of her daughter for the first time.

“Now, tell me where we can find the Avatar.”

Lin didn’t speak, completely unsure of what to do.

Her hesitation lasted too long.

“Very well, then.”

The world seemed to move in slow motion as Lin watched him turn and punch Rei in the stomach. The young woman doubled over and let out a cry through her gag. Lin struggled against her restraints but couldn’t do anything but watch as he stuck her again, Rei falling to the ground and curling up against herself.

“NO!”

The guards on either side of Rei looked at each other and glanced around nervously as the entire room seemed to tremble. The interrogator looked to Lin, a slight look of fear on his face for the first time. She tried as hard as she could to find a connection to her element but she couldn’t feel anything. The man walked to her, leaning in close and taking her chin in his hand and tilting it up to look at him.

“Help me find the Avatar. Or watch me kill your daughter.”

She didn’t even care as tears streamed down her face as she closed her eyes. He released her chin, pushing her head back as he walked away. She opened her eyes in time to see him wave a hand at the firebender from before.

“Lao.”

He turned toward her daughter and took aim. Lin flinched as the flame shot out, hitting the metal restraint on the girl’s leg. Rei cried out and Lin hated herself for how helpless she was. She couldn’t feel the earth, she didn’t know what to do. And then she heard something familiar, realization hitting her.

“Wait!”

The leader raised a hand and Lao stopped.

“Please, stop. I’ll help you. I know where the Avatar is.”

“I knew you were weak.”

Rei was trying to sit up and Lin smiled as the man turned back to her.

“What are you smiling at? I’ve beaten you. Broken you _._ ”

There was distant commotion somewhere outside the room that no one else seemed to pick up on. She laughed then and the man got angry, walking to her and grabbing her by the front of her tank top.

“Tell me where the Avatar is!”

“Right here.”

“What-“

He looked at her in confusion before what felt like a small explosion rocked the compound. He let her go as his head snapped to the door behind her as it slammed open, another guard running in.

“We’re under attack, sir! I don’t know how many but the Avatar is with them!”

Lin smiled smugly as he glared at her before turning to the others.

“You two with me. Lao, you keep on eye these two. They’re worth more to me alive than dead right now.”

He left, leaving the three of them alone as the sounds of fighting raged on in the distance. Rei struggled to sit up, finally turning to look at Lin. Her mouth was still gagged but she looked at Lin with understanding. It was overwhelming and Lin was at a loss of words.

“This is your first time seeing her, isn’t it? How sweet.”

The man named Lao circle from where he had been standing behind Lin to block her line of view to Rei. He looked between them, squinting his eyes in concentration.

“She looks like you. Prettier though. Her face isn’t all messed up.”

He walked to Rei, kneeling down and rubbing a finger across her cheek.

“Don’t you touch her!”

He stopped, standing again and turning to walk towards her with a serpentine smile.

“And what are you going to do to stop me?”

Lin’s temper flared again as she struggled against the restraints. It was no use, she couldn’t move at all. Instead she did the only thing she _could_ do and spit directly into his face. He reacted immediately, closing the distance between them and grabbing her by the throat. He squeezed and Lin could feel her supply of air constrict.

“You’re going to regret that. I’m going to make you watch as I-“

Whatever he planned on doing to her daughter was cut off when the door was blasted off its hinges and he was thrown away from her by thin strips of metal that pinned him against the middle of the wall hard enough that he was knocked out by the impact.

“Aunt Lin!”

Lin laughed in relief as her twin nephews appeared running over to her. They started to mess with the restraints but Lin shook her head.

“They’re platinum. See if he’s got the keys.”

Wei ran to the wall, making an earthen platform to bring him to where Lao was hanging from the wall. He fished around in his uniform before finally holding up a small key in triumph. He ran for Lin but she cut him off.

“Help her first!”

The twins seemed to notice that there was another person in the room with them for the first time. Neither of them asked questions as Wei ran to her, unlocking the restraints and helping her to her feet. He tossed the key to Wing who started releasing Lin’s metal casings. He sucked in a breath when the arm restraints fell away, revealing the red, blistered mess that was both of her hands and wrists.

They didn’t have time to worry about the damage as the whole compound shook again.

“Get her out of here. I’ve got Aunt Lin!”

Wei finished helping Rei get the gag out of her mouth before grabbing her by the wrist and pulling her to the door. Lin wanted to yell out to her to wait, not wanting to ever let her out of her sight again, but she didn’t, watching her as she ran out of the room behind her nephew.

Wing undid her leg restraints and she immediately tried to stand, quickly sitting back down when her body refused to support her own weight. They tried again with no luck.

“Just go ahead without me, I’ll catch up.”

He gave her a look so like Su that she let out a small laugh. The shouts of people fighting was getting closer and another tremor shook the room around them. Wing eyed her carefully as if he seemed to make a decision.

“Sorry Aunt Lin, but there’s only one way I’m getting you out of here.”

Before she had a chance to question him he had reached down and picked her up, practically tossing her over his shoulder like a sack of potatoes. Lin couldn’t see anything from her vantage point as they ran from the room. They seemed to be running down a maze of hallways before the sounds of several different fights got closer and Lin could feel the space around them open up.

“We’ve got them!”

“We have to get out of here, they’re taking the whole compound down!”

Lin recognized the voice as Mako’s, not that she could see anything except her nephew’s dirt covered trousers. Another moment later the whole building shook and Wing lost his balance, sending both of them tumbling to the ground. She looked up in time to see the entire ceiling start to cave in on them. Instinctively she covered her face with her arms and closed her eyes, waiting for an impact that didn’t come.

Lin opened her eyes to see the entire mountainous ceiling suspended in mid-air. She looked around. Wing was still on the ground where he had fallen and Wei had covered Rei with his own body, neither of them in any kind of bending position. And she certainly wasn’t in any shape to perform such a feat.

“Are you dunderheads going to just sit there or are you gonna clear out?”

She couldn’t help but laugh at the new voice as Wing ran to her side, helping her to her feet as they stumbled out of harm’s way. They made it to the opening of the next section where Toph Beifong stood with her arms stretched, flanked on her right side by Su who appeared to be sweating with intense concentration. As soon as everyone was clear both women lowered their arms and the stone fell to the ground, the force of it nearly knocking them all to the ground again as they ran the rest of the way to the outside world.

“LIN!”

A blue clad blur slammed into her, sending them both to the ground, Lin letting out a groan of pain and annoyance as the impact.

“Kya! I’m fine, ow!”

Kya pulled away to get a better look at her. She reached for Lin’s hands, stopping when she let out a hiss of pain. She didn’t waste any time before she summoned water from the skein at her hip, running the glowing blue water over her blistered hands. After a few moments they mostly faded, leaving behind only pink and tender skin. The relief was instant, though her thumb was still very much out of place, but the pain from the burns had subsided.

Kya flung her arms around her again and Lin let herself melt against her, hugging her back tightly.

“Thank you.”

A moment later they pulled apart again and Kya punched in the arm, hard.

“Ow! What was that for?”

“For being an insufferable, stupid, reckless, earthbending, idiot!”

Lin rolled her eyes as she finally had a chance to look around. Mako and Asami were helping Bolin his to feet, the young earthbender rubbing his head with a wince. Su was fussing over Wing and Wei while her mother was making some comment Lin couldn’t quite hear. She was surprised when she saw several of her own officers securing and restraining a group of men and women that she recognized as the guards she had encountered when she first tried to breech the compound. She didn’t see their leader though but didn’t even care about that particular problem as she caught sight of Tenzin.

The airbender was completely transfixed, staring intently at the young woman Opal and Jinora were helping get to her feet. Kya followed her gaze and quietly helped Lin get to her feet. She couldn’t move as she watched Tenzin walk to her before dropping down to his knees at Rei’s feet.

“I don’t know how I can ever expect you to forgive me for not being there for you, for not saving you that day in the hospital. I-“

His voice cracked as he trailed off, his eyes staring at the ground. After just a moment, Rei knelt down in front of him and took his hands in her own. He slowly lifted his head and met her eyes, Lin’s eyes. She smiled and carefully wrapped her arms around his neck. Tenzin quickly held her back, burying his face in her dark hair.

As they broke apart and stood Tenzin wiped away tears before taking her by the hand and turning to where Kya stood with a completely frozen Lin at her side. A wave of panic hit her as emotions she had never felt before welled inside of her. She didn’t know what she should do but a familiar rhythm started to echo through her bones as they got closer and she felt a sense of peace help calm her nerves.

She closed the space between them and reached an injured hand out towards Rei’s chest.

“M-may I?”

Rei looked a little confused but nodded silently as Lin gently placed her hand over her heart and closed her eyes. She did not care to fight the tears that streamed down her cheeks as she smiled at the beating of her daughter’s heart. She thought she would never feel that perfectly unique rhythm again and yet her it was, thrumming beneath her hand as strong as ever.

Lin opened her eyes and smiled, placing her hand gently on Rei’s cheek. Neither of them seemed to have any words before Lin pulled her close to her, hanging on as tight as she could as if she might disappear if she didn’t.

“Lin?”

They broke apart as Su and Toph approached, Su eyeing the familiar looking young woman with a curious gaze. Lin thought her heart might explode when Rei smiled at her before they turned to look at them.

“Su, mother, this is my daught-“

“Well no shit, Lin. I never would have put that together if you hadn’t told me.”

Rei’s eyes widened in surprise while both Lin and Su rolled their eyes in unison. Su hooked her arm through Rei’s and rubbed her arm affectionately.

“Don’t mind her, she’s always like that. But she _does_ care more than she’ll admit.”

Toph scoffed to the contrary but her heart wasn’t really in it.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This chapter was told in Lin's POV so there's some details missing. I've got a couple chapters left with some more fluffy family goodness and hopefully a nice little epilogue. Thanks for sticking with me!
> 
> Also, Wei and Rei. That was fun to keep straight lol!


	16. Chapter Fifteen

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry for the delay! I think I've actually finished this one

It had been nearly a week since the rescue. Those days had gone by in a complete blur that Rei was still trying to comprehend. She had lost the only mother she had ever known but in the process had found a family she didn’t even know existed. Things had been awkward and weird but she wouldn’t have traded it for the world.

They were all gathered on Air Temple Island. Everyone had basically set up camp on the island for the last week while Lin recovered and Rei got to meet her family. The day after the rescue Master Katara had shown up and Rei had the dawning realization that the master waterbender and world famous healer was her grandmother.

“Typical that Sugar Queen shows up after the fighting is over.”

“It’s nice to see you, too, Toph.”

There was a moment when Rei didn’t know what to say, watching as the healer took turns hugging her children and grandchildren but she needn’t have worried because Katara walked right up to her, taking in her appearance with a warm smile.

She looked to Tenzin and then to where Lin was sitting on the couch before returning her gaze to Rei.

“I’m sure you’re having a difficult time processing all of _this.”_

She gestured around the room.

“But it’ll get easier with time. And you’ll never have to go through it alone. May I?”

She tilted her head as she held out her arms cautiously. Rei could feel her nerves calm at the comfort of her words and quickly closed the gap between them and let Katara wrap her arms around her. It was definitely a warmer experience than she had had with her other grandmother. But she was okay with it because Toph’s reaction to the whole situation made Rei laugh and was a welcome contrast to general awkwardness with the others.

Korra and Asami left the day after Katara arrived, heading back to the Fire Nation to finish the trip they had been on before Lin had called for their help.

Lin.

There hadn’t been a moment for them to spend together alone and while Tenzin was starting to get somewhat annoying with his hovering, Rei almost got the feeling that Lin was avoiding her. She would catch her staring in her direction but if she acknowledged it any way the impossible to read earthbender would quickly find something else to do.

She couldn’t imagine how she felt and wasn’t sure she even wanted to be a mother but Rei couldn’t stop thinking about the moments they had been together in that horrible torture room. She had sounded so scared when they threatened to hurt her. And even through all of her bindings and injuries Rei was certain she had felt the ground tremble when she had screamed for them to stop. She just wanted to talk to her but she also didn’t want to push her too hard by stepping over some unknown boundary.

On the complete opposite side of the Beifong spectrum, Toph wasn’t concerned with kind of boundaries. They had been back for only a few hours, Lin still recovering from her injuries, when the renowned earthbender decided to test Rei’s skills. She scoffed when Rei said she didn’t know how to metalbend but seemed to approve when Rei managed to block the large piece of earth she aimed at her head.

Rei wasn’t sure what came over her but she moved her hands in a crude motion and shot a rock out at the old woman. She deflected it easily but smiled wickedly.

“Attacking the greatest earthbender in the world and best police chief Republic City has ever had takes guts.”

Rei felt her stomach drop, nervous she may have overstepped in some way.

“Maybe you do have my genes, after all.”

“Of course she’s a Beifong. She’s the spitting of image of Lin at that age.”

Suyin was Rei’s favorite. She felt comfortable around her and found herself keeping close to her while she got used to the others. The woman was warm and motherly like Katara but she still had a spunk to her that Rei found delightful.

Tonight they were all gathered in the main living area. Katara, Toph, and Su were leaving the next day and they were having a celebration to send them off. Bumi was sitting on floor at the table next to Toph. Apparently he had been trying to get the earthbender to agree to a drinking contest for years and this was the first she had agreed to it. And he was failing miserably. Rei laughed with the others as he tried and failed to finish his 11th drink.

“I tried to tell you, kid! No ever beats me! Never has and never will!”

Su walked in, laughing, as she sat down next to Rei and nudged her in the knee, a mischievous look in her eye.

“I bet Lin could beat you if she would actually try.”

Lin was perched on the arm of the chair opposite Rei and she shot a glare at Su that would have made Rei shudder if the situation was different.

“I’m the chief of police, in case you’ve forgotten. And I’m too old for stupid things like that.”

“Lin’s just afraid because she’s knows she’d never beat me. Just like she never beat me in any of our sparring matches.”

“You always cheated!”

“It’s only cheating because you’re a sore loser!”

The pair bantered back and forth and Rei found herself laughing as Su interjected every once in a while to egg them on until Lin finally threw her hands up, her cheeks red with anger.

“You know what? FINE! Let’s settle this once and for all!”

Toph looked utterly delighted as Lin shoved Bumi aside, taking his place at the table and glaring at her mother. Rei was still laughing when she got up, catching Su’s eye.

“I’ll be right back, just need a bit of air.”

She carefully stepped outside, closing her eyes for a moment as she breathed in the fresh night air. When she opened her eyes she found a familiar figure sitting at the top of the stairs, looking out towards the water. Rei moved to sit quietly next to her and watched the moon sparkle against the ripples in the water.

“Sounds like Toph is finally getting that drinking contest she’s always wanted.”

“It would appear so.”

Kya groaned and threw her head back.

“Lin is a horrible patient any day of the week but hungover Lin is the worst.”

Rei chuckled. This was her first time completely alone with the waterbender and she was surprised by how at ease they both were.

“So… you and Lin?”

Kya looked at her with a mischievous smile. Rei put on a look of mock innocence as she looked up the sky with a puzzled expression.

“Does that… does that make you my aunt _and_ my stepmom?”

Kya’s face paled as she quickly looked back out over the water.

“Spirits, kid…”

“Rei?!”

They both looked around, Kya relieved at the change in subject as Tenzin came running through the doorway, looking concerned. He visibly sagged with relief when he spotted them.

“There you are! I was looking for you two. I was… I was wondering if maybe you’d like to take a ride on Oogi with me?”

Kya stood, offering a hand to Rei and pulling her up.

“Oh! I’d actually like that a lot, actually. I’ve always wanted to fly.”

Tenzin smiled and gestured for her to follow him down the stairs. Kya turned to go back inside and Tenzin stopped.

“I was hoping you’d come too, Kya.”

“She’s 20 years old, Tenzin. I think you can handle being alone with her for one air bison ride.”

Tenzin’s face reddened as he looked to the ground.

“I, uh… I wanted to introduce her to dad.”

“Oh.”

“I’d ask Bumi to come too but he’s currently passed out on the floor of my living room.”

Kya smiled as she skipped down the stairs, draping her arm around Rei’s shoulder as they made their way to the stables.

“We’re better off without him anyway, let’s go kid.”

* * *

About an hour later they landed back on Air Temple Island, Kya wiping a few stray tears as Tenzin helped them out of Oogi’s saddle. It had been a perfect night. The air warm and the sky full of sparkling stars. She had stayed back while Tenzin brought Rei closer to the statue and watched his awkwardly tried to figure out what to do with his hands as she spoke to her.

He must have said something right because after a few minutes the young woman took his hand and looked up to where their father looked out over the city. Sensing their moment of privacy was over Kya joined them, wrapping an arm around Rei’s shoulders again pulling her against her in a sideways hug.

The three of them had spent some more time there, sitting on Aang’s stone feet as they recalled stories from their younger years. Tenzin had even talked about his relationship with Lin, something Kya had heard either of them speak openly about for years. By the time they were ready to head back she felt like she had made a connection with the young woman. She was intelligent, kind, and independent in the best of ways.

Kya knew Lin was having trouble dealing with the whole situation and that she wouldn’t actually start to process it until she didn’t have a house full of people to use as an excuse to avoid talking to Rei. With most of their family leaving tomorrow tonight seemed like a good night for them to finally head back to their shared apartment in the city.

Tenzin finished helping Rei get down from Oogi and they started walking up the stairs, pausing when a stumbling figure emerged from inside, looking around wildly.

“Kya!”

The waterbender finished walking up the stairs, stopping in amusement when she reached the top as a very drunk Lin staggered toward her. She almost lost her balance before Kya grabbed her arms, bracing the unsteady eartbender in place.

“Kya! I won. I actually beat the ancient hag!”

Lin tried to take a step closer and her legs nearly gave out beneath her.

“Whoa! Easy there, tiger. Kid, a little help here. I think it’s about time we went _home_ home.”

It took Rei a few seconds to realize Kya meant her and she quickly ran to Lin’s side and draped her arm around her shoulders as she took part of her weight.

“Ten, tell the others goodnight for us. And ask mom to stop by before she leaves tomorrow.”

Tenzin inclined his head as he watched them start their awkward descent down the stone stairs, a voice yelling from inside behind them.

“I want a rematch!”

“Toph, lay back down.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> One more chapter to go and then a short little epilogue


	17. Chapter Sixteen

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Well friends, this is it! Last chapter!

Lin was dying.

There was no other explanation for the way she currently felt. She could feel her entire head throbbing and when she tried to open her eyes she immediately regretted it and closed them tight again. She wasn’t on Air Temple Island anymore which meant Kya must have decided it was time for them to go home.

Memories started coming back and she groaned. She had finally given her mother the drinking contest she had always wanted. And she had… _won._

Lin smirked and tried opening her eyes again. It was still an unpleasant experience but she decided her current feeling of death was worth it as payment for the satisfaction of beating Toph at one of her favorite games.

Sitting up was a harder task and the whole room swam. It took a moment for her gain a sense of where she was when she noticed the unmistakable smell of breakfast being cooked. Her stomach both grumbled with hunger and twisted with disgust at the smell but she got up slowly from the bed and pulled on a robe.

She could hear voices and she paused before opening the door. So that hadn’t all been a dream, Rei was here. Her daughter was alive and she was in her apartment making breakfast with the love of her life. She took in a breath and pushed through the door and into the kitchen.

“Lin! Good morning! Wasn’t expecting to see you up so early.”

“Not so loud, Kya. Morning kid.”

“Oh! Uh, good morning!”

Rei smiled cheerfully before looking to Kya as if the two of them knew something Lin didn’t. Kya walked to Lin and handed her a cup of warm liquid that she concocted herself as a cure for hangovers. She waited expectantly until Lin took a few sips before speaking.

“Lin, Rei has something she wants to ask you.”

Lin lowered the cup as she felt a sense of anxiousness build in her. She had been avoiding this conversation since they’d been back. It was easy while they were on Air Temple Island with so many people around to keep them all occupied. But now she had no choice but to face it. How could she ever make up for her failures? How could she ever expect Rei to forgive her? She turned to her and nodded in what she hoped was encouragement, unable to come up with any words.

“I had a mother my whole life and I thought it was as simple as that. But then, everything happened and I found out my entire life was a lie. And part of me is always going to love the woman who raised me because she was my mother and she really did love me. But I’m also incredibly angry at the life I missed out on and that you… that you missed out on raising me. I-I understand if you’re not comfortable with it and it’ll take a bit for me to get used to it myself but I was wondering if it’d be okay with you if… if I… if I called you mom?”

Lin didn’t say anything as she turned away, setting her cup on the counter and bracer her hands on its cool surface.

“Lin?”

“I’m sorry, I shouldn’t have… it was stupid to even think-“

A sob caught in Lin’s chest as she turned back around, grabbing Rei by the arm and pulling her close to her. Rei seemed surprised for a moment but she recovered quickly as she wrapped her arms around Lin’s middle and squeezed her tightly.

“I’ve spent the last twenty years wondering what it would be like, wondering what being a mother would feel like. Imagining what it would feel like to hear you say _mom_ for the first time.”

She pulled back to look at Rei’s face, gently wiping away the silent tears streaming down her face. She smiled and Lin felt an unfamiliar sense of peace wash over her.

“Well, how does it feel _mom?_ ”

“Better than I ever imagined, kid.”

She hugged her again and Kya playfully whispered to Lin.

“I’ve never seen you such a blubbering mess before. I wish I had my camera.”

“Shut up and come here.”

Lin pulled Kya in to join them. She wrapped her long arms around both of them and leaned over Rei’s head to kiss Lin tenderly on the lips.

Rei was completely trapped in their embrace but she wouldn’t have had it any other way. She knew things wouldn’t always be this easy in the coming days but it was a new chapter in her life that she couldn’t wait to explore. She had finally found her way home.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Just a short little epilogue left


	18. Epilogue

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you so much for all the support on this one! I know it was rough in the beginning while I tried to figure out what I wanted to do with it but I'm pretty pleased with how it turned out.
> 
> This is actually kind of a milestone for me because it's my first fic of this magnitude I've actually finished. I usually stick to oneshots or quick little stories because otherwise I tend not to finish them.
> 
> So thanks for sticking with me!

Kurai was over it all.

This most recent failure was the final straw. He was done with the Red Lotus. He had given his entire life to their cause and had lost everything in the process. He was lucky he made it out of it alive, Lao hadn’t been so lucky. In fact, he had been unable to reach anyone after the raid on their compound.

Kurai pulled his traveling cloak tight around him as the train slowed in front of a small station in the heart of Ba Sing Se. The city was so big that he was sure he could live out the rest of his life in anonymity. He had found a small home out of the way of any major roads and was content enough with its location.

He had been living there for only a week when he returned home to find his door opened just a bit. The door was old and rickety and it had creaked opened more than once on him. But he thought he had fixed that problem by adding a new lock to it. Maybe he just forget to check the latch before he left that morning.

Cautiously, he opened the door and scanned the room. There was no one there. He let out a sigh and closed the door behind him, double checking that the door was locked this time. He ate some leftover soup and headed to bed.

He had just closed his eyes when he thought he heard something. Opening his eyes he looked around, seeing only shadows in the small room. He was just about to close them again when one of the shadows moved and face came into view in the sliver of moonlight seeping in from a slit in the roof.

He tried to yell but his mouth was covered by a thin piece of metal clamping around his head. He tried to back away, to move at all but he couldn’t, his arms and legs bound together by strong metal cables. For the first time in a long time he was actually afraid as the terrifying figure that was Lin Beifong got close enough to him that he could feel her breath on his face.

“Did you really think I’d just let you get away after what you did to me?”

She stood back up, reaching her full height as she carefully pulled the badge from her chest and set it on his nightstand. She turned back to face him and he closed his eyes, resigned to his fate.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I've left it up to you to decide what Lin does next


End file.
